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THE 

Chemistry  of  Paints 

OR 

A  PARTIAL  DESCRIPTION 

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The  Harffsori-*  White  Lead,  Color 
and  Chemical  Works 

WITH  A  PRACTICAL,  TREATISE  ON  PAINTING. 


PUBLISHED  BY 

HARRISON  BROTHERS  &  CO., 
PHILADELPHIA. 


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DESKiNKD  AND  M  A  I)  I .  BY 

HARRISON  HK')TUI.KS  >C  CO. 

riUI-  VIM-  IS'lV  \.  . 

.     «      f  f  r  _    A  m      0    •  •  •  •• 

l390. 


THE  GETTY  CENTER 
LIBRARY 


JOHN  HARRISON 

FOUNDER    OF   THE   MOUSE  Of 

HARRISON  BROS.  &  CO. 
1793. 


The  Chemistry  ok  Paints. 


IN  February,  1886,  a  committee  of  the  Master  Painters  of  Phila- 
delphia called  upon.  Harrison  Bros.  &  Co.  to  request  aid  in 
entertaining  the  Master  Painters'  Association  of  the  United  States 
and  Canada,  which  was  to  hold  its  regular  annual  meeting  in 
Philadelphia  in  the  following  July.  The  firm  promptly  subscribed 
to  the  general  entertainment  fund,  and  favorably  considered  the 
suggestion  of  the  committee  to  open  their  works  to  the  inspection 
of  the  members  of  the  Association,  so  that  they  might  view  the  opera- 
tions of  paint-making  through  all  the  various  processes,  beginning 
at  the  crude  material  and  ending  with  the  highly -finished  pigments 
in  condition  to  meet  the  varied  requirements  of  the  trade.  This 
was  an  especial  consideration  on  the  part  of  this  firm,  as  their 
works  are  usually  closed  to  visitors  because  of  the  employment  of 
much  special  machinery  and  processes  not  elsewhere  in  use.  Never- 
theless, as  these  factories  are  the  only  plant  in  which  the  manufacture 
of  acids  and  chemicals  is  conducted  in  conjunction  with  the  manu- 
facture of  paints,  and  as  the  association  might  not  have  a  similar 
opportunity  offering  such  interest  and  instruction,  the  firm  waived 
all  rules  and  precedent  so  that  the  local  committee  might  be  in  posi- 
tion to  entertain  their  guests  in  an  unusual  manner. 

The  inspection  of  large  works  (especially  such  as  those  at 
Grays  Ferry,  which  include  thirty-five  different  buildings  and 
departments)  at  any  time  is  more  or  less  fatiguing,  but  in  the 
middle  of  summer  it  may  be  particularly  so,  owing  to  the  heat ;  it 
was,  therefore,  thought  desirable  to  make  special  provision  for  the 
comfort,  as  well  as  for  the  instruction,  of  the  visitors.  The  entire 
matter  was  given  in  charge  of  one  of  the  firm's  business  managers, 
who  was  enjoined  to  spare  no  expense  in  making  complete  in  every 
respect  the  arrangements  for  a  satisfactory  and  pleasant  visit. 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


Committees  from  the  clerks  and  salesmen  were  appointed  to  take 
charge  of  the  various  details.  After  careful  planning,  a  route  was 
laid  throughout  the  entire  works,  so  that  all  might  be  seen  without 
retracing  any  steps,  and,  where  necessary,  special  passage-ways 
were  constructed  to  accomplish  this  end.  A  guide-book  was  care- 
fully prepared,  and  all  the  prominent  points  were  numbered  in 
large  figures,  with  corresponding  numbers  in  the  guide-book  for 
reference,  so  that,  by  the  aid  of  the  book,  any  one  could  readily 
understand  the  connection  of  the  different  factories  and  the 
different  processes. 

A  special  train  of  seven  passenger  coaches  was  provided  to 
earn-  the  members  of  the  Association  from  the  Broad  vStreet  Sta- 
tion (which  was  near  their  general  meeting  hall)  directly  into  the 
works.  Upon  leaving  the  train,  preliminary  light  refreshments 
were  provided,  so  that  prior  to  starting  on  the  tour  all  might 
be  in  good  trim.  Although  the  progress  through  the  works 
was  rapid,  several  hours  were  occupied  in  making  the  inspection, 
and  it  was  nearly  dark  when  finished. 

The  visitors  were  then  conducted  into  a  large  tent  erected  for 
the  puq^ose,  where  tables  had  been  set  and  covers  laid  for  over 
four  hundred  guests  ;  brilliantly  lighted  with  electric  and  Siemens 
lamps  and  elaborately  decorated  with  natural  plants  and  draperies, 
the  scene  impressed  every  one  with  its  richness  and  its  beauty.  A 
banquet,  served  by  one  of  Philadelphia's  famous  caterers  and 
enlivened  by  the  music  of  a  military  band,  was  thoroughly 
enjoyed.  The  usual  speeches  concluded  the  affair,  and  the 
special  train  landed  the  beaming  and  rotund  painters  safely  at  the 
Broad  Street  Station  before  midnight. 

The  arrangements  for  the  exhibition  of  the  works  and  foi 
the  entertainment  of  the  guests  of  the  firm  were  unanimousl} 
declared  fitting  and  complete. 

The  following  description  of  the  processes  of  paint  making 
is  largely  taken  from  the  guide-book  prepared  for  the  above- 
mentioned  occasion,  and  it  is  hoped  that  it  will  interest  and 
instruct  all  who  may  have  anything  to  do  with  paints. 

Pigments  and  material  used  in  the  manufacture  of  paints 
are  so  essentially  chemical  products  that  their  consideration  is 
involved  in  that  of  manufacturing  chemistry;  and,  as  manu- 
facturing chemistry  so  largely  depends  on  sulphuric  acid,  it  is 
well  to  have  some  information  as  to  the  manufacture  of  this 
article  and  its  relation,  through  the  many  intermediate  processes, 
to  the  manufacture  of  paints. 

4 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


With  that  thought  we  start  our  guests  at  the  begin- 
ning of  chemical  processes,  showing  the  pile  of  brim-  stone" 
stone,  which  is  the  article  as  received  from  Sicily, 
smelted  there  in  a  primitive  way  from  the  brimstone-bearing  rock. 
This  is  crude  brimstone,  and  it  is  procured  by  a  crude  process; 
but  by  selection  a  wonderfully  pure  article  can  be  had. 

We  next  see  it  burnt  in  the  furnaces  arranged  for 
its  combustion,  known  as  sulphur  burners.  Burned  Burifrs" 
in  this  way,  the  fumes  are  similar  to  those  given 
from  a  sulphur  match,  and  are  sulphurous-acid  gas.  This  gas, 
by  coming  in  contact  with  oxidizing  material — generally  pro- 
vided in  the  form  of  nitrate  of  soda — is  converted  into  the  higher 
oxide,  or  sulphuric  acid.  The  hot  gases  from  the  burners  are 
passed  through  a  tower  called  a  ' '  Glover ' '  tower,  which  provides 
oxidizing  material  by  means  of  a  cascade  of  mixed  sulphuric  acid 
and  nitrous  products;  in  this  tower  the  sulphuric  acid  is  mingled 
with  the  oxidizing  material,  and  thence  carried  into  the  large 
leaden  chambers. 

We  now  reach  the  chamber  floor  and  have  a 
view  between  two  of  the  leaden  chambers,  which  chamber" 
are  known  in  the  factory  as  "  Chambers  3  and 
4."  The  length  of  each  of  these  is  265  feet.  We  walk  between 
them  to  continue  our  investigation  of  the  process.  In  these 
chambers  there  is  a  continual  commingling  of  the  sulphurous 
fumes,  the  nitrous  gases  and  steam;  also  more  or  less  air,  which 
flows  in  through  the  sulphur  burners  during  the  combustion  of 
the  brimstone.  We  can  hardly  say  "air,"  because  it  is  largely 
nitrogen,  or  devitalized  air — that  is,  air  with  its  oxygen  extracted, 
the  oxygen  having  gone  to  the  sulphur  in  the  process  of  com- 
bustion. The  draught  through  the  chambers  carries  these 
mingled  gases  along,  depositing  on  the  way,  by  a  continual 
dropping,  the  sulphuric  acid,  which  collects  at  the  bottom.  The 
acid  thus  collected  is  known  as  ' '  chamber ' '  acid. 

We  now  reach  the  end  of  the  chambers  and 
make  our  exit  from  the  building  opposite  a  tower.  &Y  Tower0 
This  is  known  as  a  "Gay-Lussac"  tower,  from  the 
name  of  its  famous  inventor,  and  is  intended  to  remove  any 
valuable  constituents  remaining  in  the  gases  which  have  passed 
through  the  chambers,  and  which  were  not  deposited  in 
the  liquid  acid.  In  the  process  of  removal  a  cascade  of  acid 
is  employed,  as  in  the  Glover  tower,  the  object,  however,  being 
to  take  from,  instead  of  to  give  to,  the  gases.    The  acid,  flowing 

5 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  IWIXTS 


continually  over  proper  material,  presents  a  large  surface  to  the 
ascending  gases  and  dissolves  out  the  valuable  portions.  Finally, 
the  exit  is  through  the  high  pipe;  and  when  the  chambers  are 
working  well,  the  escaping  gases  are  mainly  made  up  of  steam 
and  nitrogen. 

We  now  reach  the  concentrating  apparatus. 

The  acid  from  the  chambers  is  first  passed  into  leaden 
trTun"  pans  supported  on  iron  framework  enclosed  in  brick,  in 
Apparatus  which  the  first  concentration  is  made.  From  these  it 
passes  into  the  platinum  stills,  of  which  there  are  two 
sets  constantly  at  work.  These  stills  are  very  costly  appa- 
ratus, although  externally  they  do  not  impress  one  as  being 
very  valuable.  They  consist  of  a  number  of  platinum  dishes 
enclosed  in  lead;  each  dish  has  an  actual  money- value  of 
some  $2000. 

Sulphuric  acid  is  very  eager  for  water — so  eager  that 
The  Theory    |£  a  saucerml  Gf  oil  of  vitriol  be  exposed  it  will  draw 

of  Concen-         .  ...  .  F  . 

tration.  tne  atmospheric  moisture  to  it  and  soon  run  over  the 
sides  of  the  dish,  increasing  its  bulk,  and  weakening 
itself  accordingly.  Concentration  simply  consists  of  depriving 
the  acid  of  its  water  by  means  of  heat.  Immense  quantities 
of  water  are  necessary  to  surround  the  apparatus  to  cool  the  acid 
after  concentration,  its  temperature  being  from  600  to  700  degrees 
Fahrenheit  when  it  leaves  the  platinum  apparatus. 

Next  we  see  the  apparatus  for  moving  oil  of  vitriol.  It  consists 
of  large  receivers  made  of  iron  lined  with  lead,  into  which  the 
acid  flows;  when  filled,  the  supply  is  cut  off,  and  air,  under  heavy 
pressure,  is  forced  on  top,  driving  the  acid  out  from  the  bottom 
by  a  suitable  outlet.  As  acid  is  almost  twice  as  heavy  as  water, 
it  will  take  about  twice  the  pressure  to  lift  it  to  any  height;  con- 
sequently, the  air-pressure  required  is  sometimes  very  great,  the 
acid  frequently  being  lifted  to  a  height  of  sixty  feet.  It  is  forced 
by  this  system  to  the  different  portions  of  the  works.  Its  uses  in 
the  paint  department  are  numerous. 

Sulphuric  acid  has  already  been  referred  to  as  a  sort  of  prime 
motor  of  chemical  manufacturing  processes;  it  might  almost  be 
compared  with  the  engine  that  moves  the  machinery  of  a  factory. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  name  a  paint — or,  in  fact,  anything  con- 
nected with  paints — in  which  this  important  material  cannot  be 
found  as  a  constituent  or  directly  entering  into,  or  connected  with, 
its  preparation.  It  is  a  large  ingredient,  naturally,  of  that  great 
bugbear  of  the  painting  fraternity,  "barytes,"  which  is  a  com- 

6 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


pound  of  barium  and  sulphuric  acid.  It  will  be  found  in  all 
chrome  yellows  which  are  paler  than  a  neutral  medium,  and  even 
.in  this  it  is  a  constituent  of  some  of  the  salts  employed  in  its 
manufacture.  It  will  be  found  in  some  form  in  the  majority  of  the 
earth  paints.    It  is  employed  in  the  refining  and  bleaching  of  oil. 

In  these  works  there  are  four  sets  of  sulphur  burners  such  as 
described,  each  burning  daily  6000  pounds  of  the  brimstone,  or  a 
total  of  24,000  pounds.  The  furnaces  work  continuously,  day 
and  night,  weekdays  and  Sundays,  stopping  only  when  necessary 
to  repair  the  chambers.  The  daily  product  is  about  115,000 
pounds  of  chamber  acid,  equal  to  nearly  75,000  pounds  of  con- 
centrated sulphuric  acid  or  oil  of  vitriol. 

As  sulphuric  acid  enters  largely  into  the  composition  of  alum, 
the  manufacture  of  this  will  now  be  described. 

We  enter  the  clay-grinding  room.  This  clay  is 
known  as  bauxite,  and  the  best  deposits  are  found  in  ^"inciin^ 
the  South  of  France.  It  is  very  rich  in  the  ma- 
terial known  as  alumina.  The  clay,  after  having  been  thoroughly 
calcined,  is  ground  very  finely  in  the  mills  seen,  which  are  kept 
continually  running  to  grind  the  large  quantity  daily  used.  When 
this  clay  is  mixed  with  sulphuric  acid,  the  alumina  is  extracted, 
and  is  finally  utilized  as  alum. 

Next  we  enter  what  is  known  as  an  "attacking" 
department.    You  will  here  see  the  large  vats  for  the  ^D^arf 
treatment  of  the  alum  clay  with  sulphuric  acid,  which  ment 
extracts  the  valuable  constituent,  leaving  behind  all 
the  insoluble  and  useless  material. 

Now  we  enter  another  building,  used  for  the  separation  of  the 
extraneous  material  from  the  alumina  solution,  also  for  the 
partial  purification  of  the  same.  In  the  cellar  of  this  building  we 
notice  engines  and  mills  for  the  grinding  of  some  of  the  material 
used  in  the  purification  processes  ;  and  on  the  second  floor  we 
find  a  number  of  filters,  which  are  used  for  taking  out  the 
remaining  light  insoluble  matter  which  will  not  readily  settle. 

We  pass  more  filters  and  settling  boxes,  and  see  the  alum 
boiled  down  to  a  thick  mass  which  is  fluid  when  hot,  but  which  be- 
comes solid  when  cold,  somewhat  resembling  clear  sugar-candy. 
This  is  perfectly  pure  sulphate  of  alumina,  or  concentrated  alum. 

We  continue  through  this  building,  passing  stacks 
of  alum  ready  for  shipment.    Alum  bears   a  highly  Aiunf 
important  part  in  the  manufacture  of  colors,  and  it 
is  very  necessary  that  it  be  pure.    The  purest  made  is  that  known 

7 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


as  "Turkey-Red"  alum  and  is  intended  for  turkey-red  dyers;  it 
must  be  so  pure  or  free  from  other  substances  that  one  pound  of  dele- 
terious matter  should  not  be  found  in  100,000  pounds  of  the  alum. 

Alum  is  interesting  to  the  paint  man  as  giving 
fJ  eoiors^     tne  basis  f°r  carmine  and  nearly  all  lake  colors,  and 

is  used  also  in  greens,  yellows,  Prussian  blues,  and 
other  paints.  The  product  of  these  works  is  about  300  barrels 
daily.  The  alum  used  in  the  color-making  department  is  the 
Turkey-Red  alum. 

We  pass  out  of  this  building,  cross  one  of  the  rail- 
ratorics        roac*  s^cnnkrs<  &nd  go  up  stairs  into   the  laboratory 

building,  where,  in  one  of  the  best-appointed  and 
largest  laboratories  connected  with  any  establishment,  some  half 
dozen  chemists  are  continually  at  work  examining  the  crude 
material  that  comes  into  the  factory  and  testing  the  finished 
products.  Besides  the  chemists  employed  in  the  laboratory,  each 
department  is  supervised  by  a  chemist  who  has  his  own  minor 
laboratory  or  testing  room.  In  all  the  processes  of  this  establish- 
ment tests  must  continually  be  made  to  determine  that  the 
processes  are  being  properly  conducted.  The  "secrets"  of  the 
business  of  this  firm  are  the  employment  of  able  talent  and  a 
close  attention  to  chemical  principles,  backed  up  by  a  liberal 
expenditure  for  experiment. 

Directly  dependent  on  sulphuric  acid  is  the  manufacture  of 
muriatic  and  nitric  acids,  which  department  is  now  visited. 

The  one  is  made  by  treating  common  salt,  or  any 
MdNitri  other  muriate,  with  sulphuric  acid,  which  takes  the 
Acids.  place  of  the  muriatic  acid,  the  latter  being  driven 

off  as  a  gas  and  collected  in  the  necessary  receivers; 
mid  for  nitric  acid  the  same  process  is  used,  nitrate  of  soda  or  any 
oilier  nitrate  being  employed.  Nitrate  of  soda,  being  a  dangerous 
substance  when  near  burning  material,  is  always  stored  in  a  fire- 
proof vault. 

Acetic  Acetic  acid  is  also  a  dependent  of  the  sulphuric- 

Ac^(1e  acid  chamber,  and  the  department  for   its  manufac- 

ture is  now  properly  the  next  one  to  examine.  The 
acetic  acid  employed  in  the  arts  is  made  primarily  by  the  dry  dis- 
tillation of  wood.  It  is  a  product  from  the  manufacture  of 
charcoal,  known  in  its  crude  form  as  "  pyroligneous"  acid;  so  that 
it  may  be  concentrated  and  carried  from  the  charcoal  works,  which 
are  principally  in  the  woods,  where  timber  for  burning  is  abun- 
dant, it  is  mixed  with  lime,  and  is  then  known  as   acetate  of 

8 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


lime — a  very  aromatic  substance  in  its  ordinary  impure  state.  By 
means  of  sulphuric  and  muriatic  acids  the  acetic  acid  is  separated 
from  the  acetate  of  lime,  and  by  distillation  collected  in  the  neces- 
sary receivers.  By  undergoing  various  purification  processes  it  is 
sufficiently  purified  from  the  empyreuinatic  matters  which,  be- 
cause of  its  source  of  production,  necessarily  accompany  it,  to  be 
used,  when  properly  diluted  with  water,  for  household  purposes. 
The  acetic  acid  made  in  this  way  is  precisely  the  same  as  that 
made  from  alcohol  in  the  fermentation  of  cider  and  other  alcoholic 
material.  The  quantity  of  acetic  acid  made  daily  in  these  works 
is  16,000  pounds,  which  would  be  equal  to  the  acid  in  450  barrels 
of  table  vinegar.  Acetic  acid  plays  a  very  important  part  in  color 
making,  forming,  when  united  with  litharge,  acetate  of  lead,  or  the 
well-known  sugar  of  lead — probably  more  used  in  color  making 
than  any  other  salt. 

Aqua  ammonia  is  a  product  of  these  works,  but  it 
is  used  only  to  a  very  limited  extent  in  paint  making-.  water  of 
The  usual  process  of  making  it  is  to  heat  sulphate 
of  ammonia  with  quicklime  in  a  tight  cylinder;  the  quicklime 
unites  with  the  sulphuric  acid  and  liberates  the  ammonia  in 
gaseous  form.  The  liberated  gas  is  conducted  to  receivers 
charged  with  water,  in  which  the  gas  is  dissolved.  The  liquid 
ammonia,  as  usually  sold,  contains  eight  to  ten  per  cent,  of  gas. 
The  strongest  made  contains  about  twenty-seven  per  cent.  The 
ammonia  gas,  by  powerful  pressure,  may  be  condensed  to  a  liquid 
which  can  be  preserved  only  in  very  strong  iron  cylinders.  This 
is  known  as  anhydrous  ammonia,  and  because  of  the  danger  in  its 
use  will  never  be  employed  for  popular  purposes.  The  original 
source  of  ammonia  is  principally  in  the  manufacture  of  illuminat- 
ing gas,  there  collecting  in  the  gas  liquors.  The  pure  water  of 
ammonia  is  now  obtained  direct  from  these  liquors  without  first 
making  the  sulphate.  Ammonia  is  very  useful  to  the  painter 
and  the  householder.  As  a  detergent  it  readily  removes  paint  and 
varnish.  It  should  be  in  every  household  in  the  land.  Of  course 
it  must  be  used  quickly,  as  it  evaporates  rapidly  and  soon 
dissipates  its  strength. 

A  fixed  paint  remover  is  made  at  these  works, 
known  as  paint  resolvent.    It  is  in  paste  form,  and  Resolve"? 
is  used  b}^  thinly  and  evenly  spreading  it  over  the 
paint  to  be  removed,  which  it  soon  softens,  and  which  may  be  then 
scraped  away  clean  from  the  original  surface.    This  will  be  found 
invaluable  to  all  painters. 

9 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


 1  

white  Lead.  Now  we  coine  to  tne  lllost  interesting  of  all  articles 
to  those  who  have  to  do  with  paints — white  lead. 
Its  manufacture  can  be  only  briefly  described.  The  materials  used 
are  pig  lead,  acetic  acid,  water  and  tan  bark.  By  a  special 
machine,  the  pig  lead  is  cast  automatically  into  flat  round  perforated 
plates  about  rive  inches  in  diameter,  called  buckles.    A  quantity 


"  nrcKi.i:"  <n  mktallic  i.f.ad.  i.aktiiin  lorkosion-pot. 


of  these  buckles  is  placed  in  earthenware  pots  or  jars  of  about  one 
gallon  capacity,  each  having  two  large  holes  in  the  side  to  permit 
a  free  circulation  of  gases.  Lugs  or  shoulders  a  few  inches  from 
the  bottom  sustain  the  lead  buckles  and  keep  them  from 
touching  the  diluted  acetic  acid,  which  is  first  poured  in. 
The  pots  are  placed  in  layers  on  tan  in  houses  provided 
for  the  purpose,  until  built  up  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  high. 
These  piles  of  lead-and-acid-filled  pots  and  tan  are  called  stac  ks 
or  beds.     Everything  is  made  properly  tight.    The  tan  soon  heats 

and  ferments,  and  generates  carbonic  acid;  the 
ComJion       vinegar  in  the  pots,  under  the  influence  of  the  heat, 

evaporates  and  attacks  the  lead,  placing  it  in  a  state 
to  combine  with  the  carbonic  acid  and  moisture  now  in  free  circu- 
lation. In  from  sixty  to  ninety  days  the  buckles  of  metallic  lead — 
excepting,  perhaps,  a  little  core — have  become  snowy-white 
swollen  masses.  The  acetic  acid  has  disappeared  almost  entirely. 
Many  of  the  pots  are  broken  apart  by  the  swelling  of  the  lead. 
The  corroded  white  buckles  are  removed  first  to  an  apparatus 
to  shake  them  free  from  the  uncorroded  or  blue  lead,  then  to 
the  separators,  then  to  mills  to  grind  the  whole  mass  witli  water 
into  a  sort  of  milk,  which  is  mixed  with  more  water  and  run 

IO 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


through  vats  and  boxes  in  order  to  permit  all  the  coarse  particles 
to  settle  out  and  to  wash  out  the  remaining  vinegar.  Lastly,  the 
milky  liquid  is  conducted  to  the  final  settling  vat,  where  it  settles 
to  a  stiff  paste,  which  is  afterward  dried  and  then  ground  in  oil. 
The  pig  lead,  by  the  aid  of  the  heat  and  vinegar,  has  united  with 
carbonic  acid  and  water,  increasing  in  weight  nearly  twenty-five 
per  cent.,  and  in  bulk  several  times. 

A  new  process  lead,  which  is  gaining  quite  a  reputa-  New 
tion  with  many  discriminating  painters,  is  made  upon  Process 
precisely  the  same  principles,  but  differently  applied.  Lead. 
The  pig  lead,  instead  of  being  cast  in  buckles,  is  reduced  to  a  fine 
powder;  this  powder  is  moistened  with  the  dilute  acid  or  vinegar,  then 
so  placed  that  carbonic-acid  gas  circulates  freely  through  it,  the 
mass  being  maintained  at  proper  temperature.  Sometimes  this  is 
called  "  quick-process"  lead,  because  it  maybe  made  in  two  or 
three  weeks ;  but  if  the  difference  in  the  weights  of  the  minute 
grain  of  lead  powder  and  the  cast  buckle  be  considered,  it  is 
relatively  a  very  slow  process — much  slower  than  the  stack  process 
first  described,  which  is  known  as  the  old  Dutch  method;  and  it  is 
well  established  that  the  more  slowly  the  lead  is  corroded,  the  bet- 
ter the  body  of  the  white  lead. 

We  have  seen  all  the  apparatus  for  making  the  white  lead  from 
the  pig  metal  to  the  dry  white  powder.  Next  in  order,  and  im- 
mediately adjoining  the  drying-houses,  we  enter  the  department 
where  the  dry  white  lead  is  ground  in  oil,  but  will  describe  this 
later  on,  and  will  now  go  into  the  oxides  department. 

Passing  a  large  stack  of  pig  lead  received  from  the 
cars  on  the  adjoining  siding,  we  enter  the  furnace-  °X^eadf 
room,  where  are  found  a  number  of  retorts.  The  pig 
lead  is  placed  in  these;  and  when  melted,  the  retorts  are  made  to 
revolve,  thereby  constantly  exposing  a  fresh  surface  of  melted  lead 
to  the  atmosphere  and  effecting  a  rapid  oxidation.  This  oxidation 
is  as  much  a  combustion  as  in  the  case  of  the  brimstone.  The 
vital  principle  of  the  atmosphere,  oxygen,  combines  with  the  lead, 
the  first  combination,  or  when  the  smallest  quantity  is  taken, 
giving  litharge,  or  the  yellow  oxide,  also  known  as  massicot ;  a 
little  more  gives  red  lead,  or  red  oxide,  also  known  as  minium. 
If  the  lead  be  heated  very  hot,  still  more  oxygen  is  taken  up,  and 
a  brown  oxide  of  no  interest  to  painters  is  formed;  in  fact,  in  the 
ordinary  manufactory  such  oxide  would  be  called  "  burnt  lead." 

We  rapidly  pass  through  this  building,  by  the  mills,  in 
which  the  litharge  from  the  retorts  is  ground  up  in  water  to  sep- 

1 1 


TIM  CIM.mSTRV  OF  PAIXTS. 


arate  the  unoxidized  portions,  precisely  as   is  done 
uidLevfL-    m  the  corroding  department,  previously  described,  by 
tion  of  oxides,  the  pans  on  which  the  separated  fine  litharge  is  dried, 
and  by  the  mills  in  which  the  dry  product  is  ground 
up  ready  for  packing. 

The  retort  system — controlled  by  patents  of  Har- 
sv«ftemt0rt  rison  Bros.  &  Co.— for  making  red  lead  and  litharge, 
as  shown  here,  gives  a  very  pure  product  ;  the  lead 
is  entirely  guarded  from  contact  with  the  flame,  thereby  pre- 
venting cinders  and  other  dirt  from  the  furnace  becoming  mixed 
with  it,  as  in  the  ordinary  apparatus,  in  which  the  flame  passes 
over  it.  A  large  part  of  the  product  made  here  is  used  by  flint- 
glass  makers,  and,  as  they  can  use  only  the  very  purest  of  material, 
it  follows  that  for  all  fine  purposes  in  other  lines  of  manufacture 
where  these  oxides  are  required  the  product  of  this  depart- 
ment should  be  used. 

The  next  in  importance  to  the  glass  makers  is  the 
VUh  varnish  trade.  The  14  Harrison"  oxides  are  well  known 
Makers.  among  the  particular  varnish  manufacturers,  going  to 
all  parts  of  the  country,  the  Western  manufacturers 
especially  regarding  them  as  standard  goods.  The  same  litharge 
that  is  used  by  glass  makers  and  varnish  manufacturers  is 
employed  in  this  factory  in  color  making,  and  is  delivered  direct, 
without  any  charge  for  packing  or  handling,  to  the  color-making 
department,  into  which  we  shall  shortly  enter. 

The  retorts,  sixteen  in  all,  require  fifty-five  tons  of  lead  weekly 
to  keep  them  in  operation. 

Next  in  importance  to  white  lead  is  zinc  white.  It 
white  *s  a  demonstrated  fact  that  a  mixture  of  white  lead  and 

zinc  white  makes  a  better  paint  for  exterior  work  than 
either  singly.  While  this  may  seem  like  heresy  to  the  old-time 
painter,  it  is  accepted  as  a  fact  by  unbiased  practical  men,  and  by 
all  scientific  writers  on  the  subject  of  pigments  and  painting.  It 
is  the  judicious  proportions  of  these  two  pigments,  together  with 
their  thorough  combination  with,  and  special  treatment  of,  the 
oil,  that  has  made  the  enviable  reputation  of  "  Town  and  Country" 
paints.  We  can  devote  a  few  lines  only  to  the  description  of  the 
manufacture  of  zinc  white.  The  zinc  ore  is  ground  to 
Method  of  a  ^ne  pOWCier  and  mixed  with  finelv  powdered  anthra- 
cite  coal.  This  mixture  is  burned,  in  specially  con- 
structed furnaces,  on  a  bed  of  anthracite  previously  ignited.  The 
fumes  arising  are  oxide  of  zinc.    They  are  carefully  conducted 

12 


:  I 


r. 

n 


n 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


through  proper  conduits  to  houses  rilled  with  bags,  through  which 
the  draft  is  forced.  The  gases  filter  through  the  canvas,  deposit- 
ing the  fine  white  oxide-of-zinc  powder.  This  is  the  American 
method,  and  with  unimportant  exceptions  all  made  in  the  United 
States  is  by  this  method.  The  European  method  differs  in  first 
smelting  the  metallic  zinc  from  the  ore  and  subsequently  burning  it. 
The  different  grades  of  zinc  white  are  established 
simply  by  the  proximity  of  the  product  to  the  furnace.  trades* 
The  bags  nearer  the  furnace  will  contain  the  oxide  of 
poorest  color  and  mixed  with  a  minute  quantity  of  ash.  The 
more  distant  bags  will  have  the  whitest  and  purest  oxide. 

Nothing  is  more  important  to  the  color-maker  than  the 
chrome  salt,  bichromate  of  potash.    Chrome  literally  ^aitsT 
means  ' '  color, ' '  and  is  certainly  the  great  color  producer. 
The  Harrison  works  would  not  be  complete  without  a  department 
for  the  manufacture  of  this  valuable  salt,  and  until  the  establish- 
ment of  this  factory  there  was  only  one  other  in  the  country 
that  had  been  successfully  conducted.    Chrome  ore  a  speckled 
mineral,  very  hard  and  heavy,  is  a  combination  of 
oxide  of  iron  and  oxide  of  chromium.    It  was  mined  Sna!?" 
for  a  long  time  past  in  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland,  and  f^ores 
recently  in  California.     The  supply  for  these  works 
comes  principally  from  California  and  the  dominions  of  the  Sub- 
lime Porte,  where  probably  the  richest  ores  are  found.    The  hard 
ore  is  first  ground  to  a  fine  powder,  and  until  the  plan      Process  cf 
of  percussion  grinding  was  adopted  it  was  the  terror  Manufacture 
of  millwrights.    The  powdered  ore  is  mixed  with  lime 
and  potash  (or  soda,  to  make  the  soda  salt)  and  then  roasted  at  a 
bright-red  heat  with  free  access  of  air.    This  causes  the  oxide  of 
chromium  to  take  up  more  oxygen  and  become  chromic  acid,  and 
to  unite  with  the  lime  and  potash  (or  soda)  present.  The  mass  when 
cooled  is  leached,  and  the  liquors  are  concentrated  and  treated  with 
sulphuric  acid — ever  present  in  chemical  processes.    This  acid 
takes  up  a  portion  of  the  potash  and  any  lime  present,  leaving  the 
chromic  acid  united  in  double  the  original  proportion  with  the  re- 
maining potash;  hence  the  name  fo'-chromate.    This  bi-chromate 
liquor  is  then  allowed  to  cool  and  crystallize  in  large  vats  or  tanks, 
technically  known  as  dishes.    In  the  course  of  ten  days  or  two 
weeks  the  sides  and  pendent  rods  are  coated  with  magnificent  red 
crystals,  which  are  drained,  dried  and  packed.    The  product  of 
these  works  (managed  under  a  separate  organization  known  as 
the  Kalion  Chemical  Company)  is  of  unexampled  purity,  and 

13 


1 


■ 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS 


has  already  received  special  awards  at  various  chemical  exhi- 
bitions. 

Having  studied  the  manufacture  of  the  more  im- 
plant portant  chemicals  required  by  the  color-maker,  we  are 

ready  to  enter  the  color-making  department;  but  before 
doing  so  we  will  stop  at  the  boiler  plant,  which  is  well 
worthy  of  description.  Originally  each  department  had  its  separ- 
ate battery  of  boilers.  In  several  instances  the  allotted  space  had 
been  filled  up  without  supplying  the  demand  for  steam.  Increase 
was  necessary,  and  it  became  apparent  that  two  batteries  would  be 
required  for  one  department.  After  much  consideration,  the  plan 
was  adopted  of  concentrating  in  one  building  the  steam 
plant  for  the  entire  works.  An  immense  boiler-house  was 
erected,  the  noble  stack,  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  feet  high, 
seen  in  the  view  of  the  factories  given  in  the  fore  part  of  this  pam- 
phlet, was  built,  and  large  new  boilers  of  the  most  recent  design 
were  placed  in  the  new  house.    The  pressure  carried  is  one  hundred 

pounds,  and  the  capacity  is  equal  to  over  two  thousand 

horse  power.  A  railroad  siding  is  laid  on  a  trestle 
along  the  front  of  the  building,  permitting  the  coal  to  be  dumped 

from  the  cars  directly  in  front  of  the  boilers,  minimiz- 
pilnd1*"  tatg  the  firemen's  labor.  Forty  to  sixty  tons  of  hard  coal 
consumption  are  turned  daily,  converting  into  steam  from  one  million 

to  one  million  five  hundred  thousand  pounds  of  water. 
The  steam  is  supplied  to  the  works  from  an  immense  main  steam 

pipe  over  one  thousand  feet  in  length — the  largest  of 

the  kind  in  the  country  at  this  time.  It  is  all  wrought- 
Pipe  iron  lap-welded  pipe,  made  by   the    National  Tube 

Works.  It  begins  with  a  diameter  of  twenty  inches, 
and  is  gradually  reduced  to  fifteen  inches  as  branches  are  taken 
off.  In  all  its  great  length  there  is  not  one  expansion  joint.  It  is 
laid  free  on  roller  chairs,  which  permit  movement  over  its  entire 
length  without  strain,  to  counteract  expansion  and  contraction, 
which  is  sometimes  seven  inches.  Not  a  leak  is  visible.  This  is 
a  great  triumph  in  a  construction  of  this  kind. 

The   cost   of  this  main   pipe   alone,  including  ks 

erection  and  jacketing,  was  over  eleven  thousand  dol- 
lars. The  value  of  the  entire  steam  plant  is  over  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars. 

Adjoining  the  boiler-house  is  the  compressor  room, 
pressors        where  may  be  seen  three  huge  air  compressors,  which 

keep  up  a  constant  supply  of  compressed  air,  at  a  pres- 

'4 


CHEMISTRY 


sure  of  seventy-five  pounds,  for  use  in  all  the  departments  requir- 
ing it.  This  has  already  been  mentioned  in  the  description  of 
the  acid  works,  and  as  we  proceed  we  will  notice  the  air  pipes 
everywhere  carrying  this  useful  force  which  works  so  silently. 
Back  of  the  boilers— in  a  large  vault  running  the  length  of  the 
boiler-house,  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet — may  be  seen  various 
pumps,  storage  tanks,  etc. ,  used  for  collecting  and  storing  all  the 
condensed  steam,  which  is  pulled  back  to  the  boiler  house,  to 
be  used  again  in  the  boilers — a  perfect  circulation. 

Near  by  are  the  powerful  pumps,  running  night  and 
day  to  furnish  the  great  quantities  of  water  required.    A  WatCg^ 
ten-inch  main  is  scarcely  sufficient  to  supply  the  works.  Pump! 
In  a  separate  building,  absolutely  fireproof,  is  a  large 
fire  pump,  which  is  arranged  to  work  automatically  even  when 
flames  so  surround  it  as  to  render  it  unapproachable. 

The  steam  plant  is  under  the  charge  of  an  experi- 
enced engineer.  Connected  with  it  is  a  large  machine  Machine 
shop,  where  all  repairs  are  made  and  much  new  work 
is  constructed.  All  the  mills  used  in  the  paint  department  are  of 
special  construction,  and  built  in  the  machine  shop.  This  shop  is 
a  special  feature,  and  its  importance  may  be  determined  from  the 
fact  that,  at  times,  fifty  machinists  and  iron  workers  are  employed. 

Having  examined  the  various  departments  where  are  manu- 
factured the  more  important  chemicals  used  in  color-making,  we 
may  enter  the  color-making  department  itself.  This 
department  is  really  a  group  of  factories  which  would  c°for" 
of  themselves  form  an  independent  business,  and  there  Department! 
are  many  prominent  firms  and  corporations  whose  plant 
consists  only  of  what  in  the  Harrison  works  is  a  single  depart- 
ment. 

The  first  minor  department  we  enter  is  for  the  manufacture  of 
American  vermilion;  this  article  is  a  combination  of  chromic  acid 
and  oxide  of  lead,  the  latter  existing  in  large  propor- 
tions. It  is  made  by  boiling  together  white  lead  and  ven^mon* 
bichromate  of  potash,  and  subsequently  treating  the 
product  with  sulphuric  acid;  the  result  is  a  crystalline  orange 
chromate  of  lead.  The  Harrison  brand  is  known  as  ' '  Chinese 
Imperial  Scarlet. ' '  Its  use  was  at  one  time  almost  universal  in  agri- 
cultural-implement and  wagon  factories,  but  recently  the  imitation 
of  English  vermilion  has  greatly  surpassed  it.  Considering  its 
cost  and  durability  of  color,  it  is,  after  all,  a  very  useful  pigment, 
and  is  yet  the  standard  color  of  many  such  establishments.    If  the 

15 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


crystals  be  crushed,  the  color  thereby  becomes  much  lighter,  or  the 
same  as  the  uucrystallized  orange  chrome.  American  vermilion 
is  very  frequently  adulterated  with  red  lead  and  barytes. 

Next  to  this,  in  a  separate  building,  are  the  cylinders  for  mak- 
ing English  or  mercurial  (quicksilver)  vermilion.    This  is  a  com- 
bination of  sulphur  and  mercury.    Mercury  or  quick- 
Quicksilver    sjiver  sulphur  and  a  solution  of  soda  are  placed  in  a 

Vermilion.       ,  '..    .*         ..    -  A    -  .    *  ,  .. 

heavy  iron  cylinder  so  constructed  that  when  it  is 
rapidly  revolved  a  violent  agitation  of  the  contents  results;  great 
heat  is  generated,  and  the  sulphur  and  the  mercury  unite.  Great  care 
is  necessary  to  secure  a  good  color.  A  natural  color  of  the  com- 
bination of  sulphur  and  mercury  is  black,  and  the  red  color  is 
largely  due  to  friction.  The  chemical  composition  of  both  the 
black  and  the  red  sulphide  is  precisely  the  same;  the  difference  is 
due  to  a  difference  in  the  arrangement  of  the  particles,  or  what 
the  chemists  call  the  molecules;  a  chemist  would  say  it  is  a  dif- 
ference in  molecular  structure.  This  fact  accounts  for  the  tend- 
ency of  quicksilver  vermilion  to  blacken:  it  is  the  tendency  of  the 
compound  to  return  to  its  more  natural  black  state.  As  there  is 
always  an  escape  of  sulphuretted  gases  in  the  manufacture  of  this 
article,  it  is  necessary  to  conduct  it  in  an  isolated  building  freely 
ventilated;  otherwise,  all  the  lead  colors — such  as  yellow  chrome, 
green,  etc. — would  be  seriously  damaged  by  the  formation  of  the 
black  sulphide  of  lead. 

We  all  know  that  one  of  the  most  wonderful  exploits  of 
chemistry  was  the  discovery  in  nasty  coal  tar  of  the  most  bril- 
liant dyes.  One  of  these  dyes  is  called  eosine.  By  itself  it  is  a 
most  lovely  rose  color;  when  the  red  oxide  of  lead  is  dyed  with 
it,  a  magnificent  vermilion  is  obtained,  as  much  brighter  than 
the  quicksilver  vermilion  as  the  latter  is  brighter  than  the  lead 
vermilion.  This  brilliant  pigment  is  known  as  imitation  ver- 
milion, and  is  sold  under  various  fancy-names,  many  of  the 
manufacturers  adopting  the  names  of  the  celebrated  mines  of 
quicksilver.  One  of  the  most  famous  mines  is  that  of  Idria,  in 
Austria;  the  imitation  vermilion  made  at  this  factory  is  named 

after  that  mine,  prefixing  the  word  4 1  New. ' '  New  Idria 
idria  vermilion  is  well  known  to  all  consumers  of  vermilion 

vermilion.     as  one  of  the  best  of  the  class.    New  Idria  vermilion 

is  made  from  the  finest  orange  mineral  dyed  with  the 
strongest  eosin.  As  are  all  other  colors,  imitation  vermilion  is 
grossly  adulterated,  and,  as  usual,  the  chief  adulterant  is  barytes; 
some  specimens  contain  as  much  as  eighty-five  per  cent.  Other 

16 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


adulterants  are  whiting  and  terra  alba.  Some  are  made  with  the 
addition  of  white  lead;  this  requires  more  eosin,  and  a  beautiful 
crimson  shade  is  produced.  This,  however,  rapidly  fades  on  ex- 
posure, and  the  best  and  most  permanent  is  that  made  with 
orange  mineral  and  eosin  only,  which  give  the  rich  scarlet  shade. 

The  operations  of  making  the  American  and  imita- 
tion vermilions  are  conducted  in  large  vats  or  tubs.  Rooms 
The  finished  color  is  then  freed  of  its  water  as  much 
as  possible  by  filtering  and  pressing,  and  the  moist  mass 
is  afterward  removed  to  the  drying  rooms,  where  the  re- 
maining moisture  is  dried  out.  In  the  past  the  final  drying 
required  weeks;  now  days  are  sufficient.  The  unscientifically 
constructed  drying  closets  are  replaced  by  rooms  built  entirely  of 
brick  and  iron.  Bach  room  is  provided  with  a  fan,  which  forces 
throughout  the  entire  space  a  continuous  current  of  warm  dry  air 
in  a  complete  circulation.  The  color,  in  cakes,  is  placed  on  trays, 
which  are  laid  on  racks.  Each  color  has  its  own  room.  The  fans 
are  run  by  small  engines,  which  operate  day  and  night  until  the 
cakes  of  color  are  bone  dry.  The  room  is  emptied  and  filled 
again,  closed  up,  and  the  operation  continues  without  the  least 
possible  loss  of  time.  Each  sub- department  of  the  general  depart- 
ment of  color-making  has  its  own  drying  rooms.  From  the  dry- 
ing rooms  the  vermilions  are  taken  to  the  grinding  and  sifting 
apparatus  and  reduced  to  the  fine  state  in  which  they  are  found 
in  the  dealers'  hands. 

The  next  department  we  visit  is  that  for  making  yellow  and 
orange  chrome.  These  also  are  combinations  of 
chromic  acid  and  oxide  of  lead;  but  for  these,  lead  salts —  Yellow* 
the  nitrate  and  acetate  of  lead — are  used.  A  nitrate  of 
lead  will  give  a  yellow  with  physical  properties  different  from  one 
made  of  acetate,  though  both  have  precisely  the  same  chemical 
composition.  This  is  again  due  to  the  different  arrangement  of 
those  imaginary  atoms  called  by  the  chemist  molecules.  We  see 
large  vats  in  which  the  various  salts  are  dissolved;  when  of  the 
right  temperature  and  density,  these  solutions  are  run  together  in 
large  vats,  and  the  color  is  seen  to  fall  out.  This  is  called  ' '  strik- 
ing' '  the  color,  and  the  operation  is  one  of  great  delicacy.  The 
chemical  change  is  easily  understood.  Acetic  acid  and  oxide  of 
lead  are  combined  as  sugar  of  lead;  this  is  soluble  in  water. 
Chromic  acid  and  potash  are  combined  as  bichromate  of  potash — 
a  salt  also  soluble  in  water.  When  the  two  solutions  come 
together,    the     chromic    acid    goes    to    the    lead,  making 

17 


1  HE  i  HEM  IS  TR ) '  OF  P.  1  AY  TS. 


Theory  of  chromate  of  lead,  and  the  acetic  acid  goes  to  the 
predpita-  potash,  making  acetate  of  potash.  The  chromate  of 
tlon-  lead  is  the  insoluble  chrome  yellow,  and  falls  out  of 

the  solution.  The  acetate  of  potash  is  soluble,  remains  in  the 
liquid  with  the  color,  and  is  finally  washed  out  with  pure  water. 
This  operation  is  one  of  precipitation.  The  reaction  is  called 
double  decomposition,  and  the  foregoing  explanation  answers  for 
all  colors  made  by  precipitation. 

This  leads  us  to  consider  color-making  in  a  more  general  way. 
We  are  now  in  the  chief  color-maker's  office,  and  find  it  quite 
similar  in  appearance  to  the  laboratories  referred  to  on 
JtyT  P^£e  8.    It  is  a  laboratory  as  well  as  an  office.    The  chief 

science.        color-maker  is  a  chemist  who  received  most  of  his  train- 
ing in  the  general  laboratories  of  the  works;  his  assistants 
are  required  to  be  able  to  make  chemical  tests,  and  are  expected 
to  familiarize  themselves  with  the  chemical  knowledge  bearing 
directly  on  their  work.    While  color-making  involves  what  might 
be   called    many  "rule-of-thumb"    operations,    yet   every  one 
of  these  so-called  44  rule-of-thumb' '  practices,  when  viewed  from  a 
scientific  standpoint,  is  capable  of  being  resolved  and  amplified 
into  scientific  practice.     Much   mystery  is  thrown  around  this 
business,  but,  after  all,  success  depends  upon  education  guided 
by  practical    experience.     Many  of  the    most    valuable  chemi- 
cal theories  have  been  evolved  from  facts  or  results  noticed  and 
known  for  a  long  time  by  workmen,  and  it  is  only  when  some  one 
of  them  inquires  into  the  cause  of  certain  effects  that  the  reason 
or  theory  is  finally  discovered  and  more  folly  and  scientifically 
applied.    When,  in  the  color-making  department,  it  is  ascertained 
that  brown  sugar  of  lead — an  impure  salt  as  compared  with  the 
beautiful   white  crystallized   sugar  of  lead — will  make  certain 
colors  which  the  white  will  not  produce,  we  soon  learn  that  the 
very  impurities,  which  consist  of  pyroligneous  matters,  have  a 
peculiar  mordanting  effect  which  prevents  the  reaction  of  the 
residual  salts  on  the  newly- formed  color — a  reaction  that  would 
take  place  if  absolutely  pure  chemicals  were  used,  without  the 
pyroligneous  mordant  or  its  equivalent. 

Barytes  is  the  common  adulterant  of  all  paints,  and 

□f  coiorati°U  is  used  immediately  before  or  after  4 '  striking' '  the  color, 
according  to  circumstances.  Probably  no  other  indus- 
tries offer  the  same  opportunities  for  downright  robbery,  by  means 
of  sophistication,  as  paint-making  and  painting.  The  unscrupu- 
lous paint-maker  uses  increased  closes  of  barytes  as  competition 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


lowers  his  prices.  The  dishonest  painter  makes  two  coats  of  paint 
fill  his  contract  for  three;  he  buys  adulterated  oils,  or  wilfully 
adulterates  them;  he  will  take  a  strong-bodied  and  originally 
reliable  paint,  and  by  reducing  it  with  all  the  cheap  and  vile 
material  it  will  bear  will  make  a  profit  out  of  a  contract  taken  at  a 
rate  that  would  net  only  a  loss  to  the  honest  man. 

Fortunately,  the  great  majority  of  painters  are  honest;  and  the 
crusade  against  low-grade  paints  .started  by  the  proprietors  of  the 
works  we  are  now  describing  is  forcing  unscrupulous  paint-  makers 
to  adopt  higher  standards.  While  barytes  is  used  almost  invari- 
ably as  a  mere  adulterant,  it  occasionally  serves  the  purpose  of 
diluting  a  color,  or,  more  properly  speaking,  of  separating  its  parti- 
cles and  delaying — or  preventing,  possibly — chemical  reactions 
which  speedily  might  occur  were  the  color  perfectly  pure.  In  its 
precipitated  form,  or  as  blanc  fixe,  it  is  an  invaluable  material 
when  used  as  a  base  for  certain  light  lake  colors  which  could 
hardly  be  collected  but  for  such  a  base;  so,  when  the  analysis  of  a 
color  shows  the  presence  of  barytes,  it  is  necessary  to  go  farther — 
and  the  intelligent  analyst  knows  how  to  go  farther — to  discover 
whether  this  sulphate  of  baryta  which  he  finds  is  the  crude 
native  mineral  simply  ground  to  a  fine  powder,  or  that  precipi- 
tated to  impalpable  fineness  from  solutions — the  blanc  fixe.  The 
proprietors  of  these  works  stand  alone  in  having  for  a  long 
time  past  steadily  and  persistently  exposed  to  painters  the  frauds 
practised  upon  them;  yet  they  know  that  sulphate  of  baryta  is  like 
a  great  many  other  things  in  constant  use:  it  may  be  used  prop- 
erly or  it  may  be  abused.  On  general  principles,  however,  it  is 
safe  to  turn  resolutely  from  any  color  which  consists  largely  of 
barytes.  Some  colors  are  wonderfully  strong,  and  may  apparent- 
ly still  be  good  colors,  when  there  is  no  standard  near  for  com- 
parison, and  yet  may  contain  ninety-five  per  cent,  or  more  of  this 
adulterant. 

To  insure  success  in  these  days  of  intense  com- 
petition, not  only  must  the  scientific  features  of  color-  ciianicsai 
making  be  well  understood,  but  all  the  mechanics  of  coior- 
the  business  must  be  thoroughly  studied.    In  these 
works  every  known  appliance  is  used;  the  agency  of  compressed 
air  is  brought  into  play  wherever  possible;  the  old-style  slow- 
working  filter  and  the  hand  press  are  replaced  by  the  filter  press, 
in  which  machine  are  combined  the  two  operations  of 
filtering  and    pressing.     Some   colors,  such  as  ver-  Vl&l 
mi  lion,  will  not  readily  permit  the  employment  of  the 

19 


run  chemistry  of  paints. 


filter  press,  and  for  such  colors  very  few  modifications  of  the  old 
processes  are  practicable.  Colors  such  as  chrome  yellows,  chrome 
greens,  Prussian  blues,  Tuscan  red  and  the  lakes  make  a  thin  fluid 
pulp  which  may  be  forced  into  the  filter  press  through  pipes. 
The  thin  color  is  run  from  the  striking  tub,  after  it  has  been 
washed,  into  a  vat  of  sufficient  size  to  hold  several  batches;  in 
this  they  are  intimately  blended,  to  insure  uniformity  of  shade. 
Next  they  are  run  into  a  cylindrical  vessel  made  of  very  heavy 
sheet  copper:  this  is  called  montjus  (meaning  to  raise  liquid); 
and  when  filled,  the  inlet  is  closed.  A  pressure  of  fifty  to  eighty 
pounds  to  the  square  inch  is  applied  to  the  surface  of  the  pulp, 
which  forces  it  from  the  exit  tube  opening  at  the  bottom  of  the 
vessel  and  connecting  with  the  press;  the  press  is  rapidly  filled 
up,  and  the  cakes  of  color  become  very  dense,  the  water  being 
squeezed  out  by  the  powerful  pressure. 

The  air  pressure  is  used  in  the  color-making  depart- 
T rLtt&Mr  ment  to  move  acids  and  chemical  solutions  which 
s  (  would  corrode  pumping  machinery;  the  operation  is 
swift,  noiseless  and  certain.  The  compressed  air  is  also  made  to 
do  certain  other  work  that  formerly  was  done  by  the  hand  of  the 
laborer. 

The  description  of  the  manufacture  of  chrome  yel- 
GreenT        *ow  aPPnes  a^so  to  that  of  chrome  green.  This  is  really  a 

mixture  of  yellow  and  blue,  and  the  two  colors  are 
thrown  down  together,  which  gives  a  brightness  and  a  per- 
manency not  obtained  by  simple  mixture.  When  the  yellow  is 
taken  from  the  drying-room,  it  is  ready  for  sale  as  dry  yellow,  or 
for  delivery  to  the  grinding  department  to  be  converted  into  oil 
color.  Chrome  green,  before  it  is  packed  for  sale  dry  or  before  it 
is  transferred  to  the  color  grinders,  is  first  reduced  in  dry  color 

mills  to  a  fine  powder.  Sylvan  green,  so  wTell  known 
Green"         to  tne  tra<^e  *n  general,  is  made  here.    This  is  a  very 

permanent  and  brilliant  green,  and  it  is  made  in  six 
shades — from  very  pale  to  very  deep. 

Chinese  and  Prussian  blues  are  produced  from  prus- 
chmese  Blue  sjate  Qf  potash  and  an  iron  salt — usually  copperas.  If 
Blue.  *ne  yellow  prussiate  of  potash  and  copperas  be  used, 

the  color,  when  first  struck,  is  white;  this  by  oxidation 
turns  blue,  and  the  oxygen  of  the  atmosphere  wrill  effect  this  change 
if  sufficient  time  be  given.  To  obtain  quickly  the  rich  deep  blues 
with  a  lustre  of  bronze,  there  must  be  recourse  to  powerful  oxidizing 
agents,  aided  by  heat.    Strong  nitric  acid  is  used  for  some  blues, 

23 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OE  PAINTS. 


chlorate  of  potash  for  others;  and  various  other  agents  are  em- 
ployed. Soluble  Chinese  blue  for  the  laundry  is  an  important 
feature  of  the  blue  department.  There  is  but  very  little  chemical 
difference  between  the  ordinary  Chinese  blue  (which  is  insoluble 
in  water)  and  that  which  is  soluble;  this  quality  of  solubility  is 
obtained  chiefly  by  special  manipulation.  Blue  is  very  light,  and 
it  forms  a  very  bulky  paste;  hence  for  the  same  product  more 
presses  are  required  in  this  department  than  in  any  other,  except- 
ing in  that  for  the  lakes.  The  advantage  of  the  application  of  me- 
chanical principles  in  increasing  the  output  is  not  so  well  shown 
anywhere  else  as  in  this  department.  Were  the  old  methods  of 
filtering,  pressing  and  drying  now  in  use,  at  least  five  times  the 
floor  area  would  be  required  for  the  present  output. 

Leaving  the  sub-department  for  blues,  we  enter  the  factory  for 
the  manufacture  of  Tuscan  red  and  of  lake  colors.    The  apparatus 
in  this  department  is  quite  similar  to  that  we  have  seen  in  the 
others — the  striking  tubs,  though  somewhat  different  in  shape, 
the  filter  presses,  with  the  addition  of  peculiarly-shaped  copper 
vessels,  resembling  a  ball  drawn  out;  these  are  suspended  in  iron 
frames  which  permit  them  to  be  turned  over  in  order  to  discharge 
their  contents.    These  are  known  as  autoclaves  or  digesters,  and 
their  purpose  is  to  extract  the  coloring  matter  from  dye  woods; 
the  extracted  coloring  matter,  in  liquid  state,  is  stored 
away  in  vats  until  wanted  for  use,  when  it  is  precipi-  c^lorsfr°m 
tated,  by  means  of  alum,  tin  salts,  barium  salts,  etc., 
according  to  the  nature  of  the  lake  and  the  color  or  shade  desired. 
The  texture  of  some  of  the  very  fine  colors  made  in  this  depart- 
ment would  be  injured  by  the  severe  pressure  of  the  filter  press, 
and  for  these,  vacuum  filters  are  employed,  using  an  opposite  prin- 
ciple, apparently,  but  really  the  same;  for  by  means  of  a  partial 
vacuum  the  natural  pressure  of  the  atmosphere  is  in  part  realized. 
The  principal  dyewood  used  is  Brazil-wood,  from  which  is  pro- 
duced the  lake  most  largely  used  in  paint-making,  chatemuc. 
This  wood  also  gives  us  rose  pink,  which  is  simply  a  lake  precipi- 
tated on  Paris  white.    Carmine  and  its  lakes  are  obtained  from 
cochineal.     The  carmine   apparatus  is  entirely  distinct,  and  is 
separated  from  all  the  others.    The  majority  of  the  lake  colors  are 
comparatively  fugitive;  therefore  it  is  desirable  to  select  such 
material  as  will  give  the  more  permanent  colors. 

Tuscan  red  is  made  in  this  department;  generally  it  Tuscan 
is  simply  a  mixture  of  Indian  red  and  rose  pink.  Har-  Urq&. 
risons'  new  Tuscan  red  is  made  upon  scientific  principles 

21 


J  HE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


and  is  the  most  brilliant  and  the  most  durable  color  of  the  kind  that 
is  known.  The  enriching  lake  is  almost  imperishable,  and  will  bear 
a  temperature  of  4000  F.  without  being  sensibly  affected.  Tuscan 
red  is  a  sort  of  connecting-link  between  the  lake  colors  and  the 
mineral  colors.  The  "Town  and  Country"  Ready-Mixed  Paint 
No.  618,  which  is  such  a  great  favorite,  is  made  from  this  new 
Tuscan  red. 

Many  of  the  recently-produced  coal-tar  dyes  have  much  greater 
permanency  than  those  first  made.  This  enables  the 
Srmti  paint-maker  to  give  to  his  trade  brilliant  pigments  that 
theretofore  were  unknown.  One  produced  here  is  the 
now  celebrated  Ottoman  red — a  color  much  less  costly  and  of 
more  body  than  carmine,  but  equal  to  it  in  brilliancy  and  per- 
manence. 

The  machinery  for  powdering  dry  colors  is  a  very  import- 
ant feature  of  this  large  color-making  establishment, 
Madhine™  anc*  *s  (linte  distinctly  separated  from  the  apparatus 
employed  in  the  other  processes.  Mills  are  the  same 
in  principle,  as  a  rule,  no  matter  what  their  special  use,  and  the 
description  of  one  answers  for  all;  special  mention  of  them  will 
be  made  farther  on.  It  will  be  noticed  that  great  care  is  taken  to 
isolate  each  color  completely.  In  one  room,  in  which  everything 
is  green,  there  are  several  mills,  and  breakers  and  great  piles  of 
green  on  the  floor.  To  keep  the  shades  of  standard  goods  strictly 
uniform,  25,000  to  35,000  pounds  of  the  dried  color  are  manipu- 
lated at  one  time.  The  dried  color  is  brought  from  the  drying- 
rooms  directly  here;  it  is  immediately  passed  through  the 
breakers  and  then  piled  in  heaps  and  mixed  thoroughly;  after- 
ward it  is  fed  to  the  mills,  ground  to  the  required  degree  of  fine- 
ness, and  discharged  through  spouts  into  the  storage  bins  on  a 
floor  beneath. 

In  the  blue-grinding  department  are  two  divisions;  one  is 
for  soluble  or  laundry  blue  only,  and  the  other  for  Chinese  and 
other  blues  intended  strictly  for  pigment  use.  In  one  room  the 
prevailing  color  is  maroon,  and  here  Harrisons'  new  Tuscan  red  is 
ground  to  an  impalpable  powder.  In  the  red-milling  department 
there  are  three  divisions — one  for  quicksilver  vermilion,  one  for 
American  vermilion  and  the  other  for  New  Idria  vermilion.  As 
the  vermilions  are  more  deleterious  to  health  than  other  colors, 
precaution  is  taken  to  keep  the  air  clear  of  dust.  Over  the 
hoppers  of  the  mills,  and  over  all  points  where  dust  may  escape, 
inverted  funnels  connected  with  large  galvanized  iron  pipes  may 


22 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


be  seen;  these  all  run  into  one  large  pipe,  in  which 
there  is  a  powerful  fan  drawing  the  air  through  these  Precaforthe 
funnel-openings,  and  with  it  all  the  dust.  This  dust-  ^p^fve^ 
laden  air  is  forced  into  a  properly-constructed  dust 
chamber,  where  the  greater  part  of  the  floating  color  is  deposited; 
that  which  is  not  caught  in  the  chamber  is  collected  by  means 
of  a  spray  of  water.  Similar  appliances  were  seen  in  the  oxide 
and  white-lead  departments,  and  are  in  use  where  all  dangerous 
dusts  arise.  Workmen  in  these  departments  are  required  to 
change  their  clothing  in  a  special  room  entirely  apart  from  the 
work  places;  aside  of  this  dressing  room  are  large  bath  and 
wash  rooms,  where  every  facility  is  afforded  for  a  thorough  cleans- 
ing of  the  body  after  quitting  work. 

Leaving  the  group  of  factories  constituting  the  color-making 
department,  wTe  pass  a  detached  building  in  which  are  several 
huge  vertical  iron  cylinders  with  some  peculiar  attach- 
ments suggesting  steam-boilers.  These  are  the  water  purifier" 
purifiers.  The  water  used  in  color-making  must  be  very 
pure — not  merely  clear,  but  free  from  all  soluble  impurities,  partic- 
.  ularly  organic  matter.  These  purifiers  remove  not  only  the  visible, 
but  the  invisible,  impurities;  they  give  purer  water  than  can  be  ob- 
tained from  any  settling  pond  or  crystal  lake,  and  are  of  material 
aid  in  securing  the  brilliancy  and  richness  of  the  Harrison  colors. 

In  the  regular  course  of  affairs  the  operations  following  the  color- 
making  are  those  for  grinding  the  colors  in  oil;  but  before  entering 
the  oil-color  mill-house  we  should  inspect  the  dry  color-grinding 
department,  where  all  the  earth  colors  are  specially  treated  to 
develop  their  best  qualities.  In  one  of  the  adjoining 
storehouses  may  be  seen  great  tiers  of  barrels,  casks  storehouse" 
and  hogsheads,  the  contents  of  which  are  suggested 
by  their  exterior  coloring.  Here  is  a  lot  of  casks  holding  some- 
thing very  yellow,  each  package  having  a  peculiar  brand  burnt 
into  the  head;  it  is  an  invoice  of  the  celebrated  Auxerre  ochre. 
The  marks  "  ss  Switzerland  8-22-89"  indicate  that  it  was 
received  by  the  steamship  Switzerland  on  August  22,  1889. 
Adjoining  is  a  pile  of  frail  and  awkward-looking  packages  which 
contain  Italian  sienna;  the  marks  "  bk  Leandro  5-2-89"  indicate 
that  it  was  received  by  the  bark  L,eandro  May  2,  1889.  In 
this  manner  each  importation  is  kept  distinct.  There  are  a  num- 
ber of  stacks  of  the  same  kind  of  packages,  some  with  a  reddish 
look,  others  with  a  yellow  or  brownish  stain;  they  all  contain 
siennas.    Some  of  them  are  in  the  raw  state,  some  of  them  burned. 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


Those  ugly  hogsheads,  each  large  enough  to  hold  a  ton  or  more,  con- 
tain umber.  This  one  storehouse  is  60  x  1 50  feet,  with  a  convenient 
drive-way  through  it;  it  is  filled  with  these  foreign  goods:  ochres 
from  France;  siennas  from  Italy;  umbers  from  Cyprus  and  Italy; 
browns  from  Germany — a  big  shipload  in  all.  That  immense 
stock  explains  the  enigma  to  those  color-grinders  who  are  puzzled 
with  the  uniformity  of  the  Harrison  siennas,  umbers,  etc.  These 
earth  pigments  in  the  original  state  vary  so  much  that  no  two 
invoices  are  alike;  only  by  having  a  varied  stock  which  may  be 
mixed  in  proper  proportions  can  a  uniform  color  be  maintained. 
In  the  dry-color  grinding  department  the  crude  earth  paints  are 

carefully  picked  and  sorted  and  dried;  they  are  then 
Grinding  mixed  in  the  proportions  that  will  give  the  standard 
Earth  paints,  shades,  and  finally  ground  to  an  impalpable  powder. 

Even  those  colors,  such  as  ochres,  metallic  browns, 
colcothars,  etc.,  which  by  all  other  paint-makers  are  considered 
sufficiently  fine  to  grind  in  oil  at  once,  in  this  establishment  first 
are  treated  in  this  department;  none  of  these  goods  (and  only  the 
finest  are  admitted  here)  are  fine  enough. 

The  careful  observer  will  notice  in  his  journey  through  these 
great  works  the  complete  independence  of  one  department  on 
another.  Thus,  in  the  dry-color  grinding  department  is  an  inde- 
pendent engine,  enabling  work  to  be  done  continually,  day  and 
night,  if  the  demands  of  the  other  departments,  which  may  be 
run  only  in  daytime,  make  this  necessary.  No  color  can  be 
properly  ground  unless  it  be  bone  dry;  and  for  drying  purposes 
may  be  seen  large  steam-heated,  open  drying  pans  and  steam- 
jacketed  revolving  drums  of  different  sizes;  also  apparatus  which 
both  dries  and  mixes  at  one  operation.  Drying  is  an  important 
operation,  for  the  tone  of  some  of  the  colors  is  much  impaired  by 
Overheating.  The  mills  are  of  special  construction,  and  are  almost 
noiseless  in  operation.  Their  work  is  at  variance  somewhat  with 
those  mills  of  which  it  is  said, 

"  Though  the  mills  of  the  gods  grind  slowly, 
Yet  they  grind  exceeding  fine," 

for  these  not  only  u  grind  exceeding  fine,"  but  grind  very  quickly 
and  in  large  quantity.  The  impalpable  color  is  discharged  into  tight 
cars,  which  are  really  movable  bins,  all  of  one  size,  holding  500 
to  1000  pounds  each,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  material. 
These  cars  are  used  to  store  the  color  until  it  is  required  in  the  oil- 
color  mill-house. 

While  the  colors  which  are  more  directly  the   product  of 

24 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


chemistry  in  so  large  measure  owe  their  existence  to 
chromium,  the  colors  of  this  department — Nature' s  prod-  the'ijarth 
ucts,  as  it  were — owe  their  being  to  iron  almost  with-  colors 
out  exception.  The  rich  brown  umbers,  the  bright 
siennas,  the  beautiful  maroon  in  all  the  various  shades  of  Indian 
red,  Venetian  red  and  ochre, — all  of  them  owe  their  coloring  to  iron 
only.  Vandyke  brown  owes  its  color  principally  to  carbon.  Ivory 
black  owes  its  color  entirely  to  carbon. 

The  grinding  of  colors  in  oil  naturally  follows  the  dry  grind- 
ing; and  we  now  go  into  a  building  recently  erected 
especially  for  this  purpose  upon  most  carefully  devised    Mm  House* 
plans,  and  provided  with  all  the  latest  and  best  ap- 
pliances. 

While  the  mechanical  methods  and  processes  now  employed  in 
many  of  the  important  industries  which  have  risen  to  their  present 
prominence  within  a  comparatively  recent  period  resemble  but  little 
the  early  and  hand  processes  which  they  have  supplanted,  the 
reverse  of  this  is  the  case  in  the  grinding  of  colors:  the  mills  are 
made  much  more  accurately,  more  highly  finished  and  of  material 
better  adapted  to  the  purpose  than  they  were  some  years  ago,  but 
there  are  no  essential  changes,  and,  after  all,  it  is  only  an  evolution 
from  the  slab  and  muller,  and  no  real  change  in  process.  The 
mixer,  however,  that  is  now  employed  can  hardly  be  connected 
with  the  idea  of  mixing  dry  color  and  oil  in  a  keg  laboriously  by 
hand.  Even  the  mixer  of  comparatively  recent  production,  with 
its  one  set  of  fixed  and  one  set  of  revolving  arms,  cannot  com- 
pare with  the  one  which  is  here  used,  and  in  which, 
by  means  of  complex  motion,  the  thorough  incor-  ^cofonf 
poration  of  the  pigment  and  oil  is  rapidly  effected, 
and  with  economical  expenditure  of  power. 

In  this  great  mill  house  the  progress  of  modern 
ideas  is  especially  shown  in  all  the  arrangements  where-  ^deaT 
by  the  costly  but  needful  labor  and  power  are  mini- 
mized. 

The  exterior  of  the  building  is  necessarily  plain;  it  is  so  con- 
structed as  to  cause  the  complete  lighting  of  the  interior  by  nu- 
merous large  windows,  the  flood  of  light  reaching  the 
very  centre  of  every  floor.    Due  consideration  is  also  v^^a\f0nd 
given  to  ventilation  without  draught,  so  that  there  is 
as  little  dust  as  possible. 

Starting  at  the  third  floor,  we  see  here  dry  colors  in  the  dust- 
tight,  wheeled  bins  which  have  been  brought  over  from  the  dry- 

25 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


color  grinding  department.    There  are  also  such  stationary  bins 
as  may  be  necessary  and  convenient. 

The  dry  material  is  first  passed  to  the  drying 
theSrj  machines,  so  that  all  absorbed  moisture  may  be  driven 
for  theal  out  anc*  co^or  Properly  warmed  for  mixing.  It  is 
Mixer  then  transferred  to  accurate  scales,  carefully  weighed, 
and  quietly  but  quickly  placed  in  the  mixers,  with  the 
oil  or  other  vehicle  added  in  carefully  weighed  quantities;  all  of 
this  work  is  attended  to  by  a  clerk  in  charge. 

This  preparation  and  mixing  of  the  colors  for  the  mills  is  the 
principal  operation  on  this  floor.    Kvery  appliance  in 

for  MixiuCS     the  way  of  trucks»  turn-tables,  etc.  for  the  rapid  move- 
ment of  material  may  be  seen;  also  the  necessary  oil, 

varnish  and  japan  tanks  with  their  gauges  and  scales. 

On  the  second  floor  we  see  nothing  but  mills — big  mills  and  lit  - 

Mills  ^e  lm^s'a^  shapes  and  sizes — designed  especially  for  the 

work  required  of  them,  one  pigment  working  better  in 

one  kind  of  a  mill  than  in  another;  and  here  let  it  be  said  that  the 

color  is  not  ground  once  or  twice  or  any  specified  number  of 
times:  the  great  secret  of  the  success  of  this  estab- 

Grindhr°f    lisliment  is*  that  the  color  must  be  ground  until  it  has 
reached  the  required  degree  of  fineness,  whether  the 

number   of  times   it   is   passed   through  the  mill  be   one  or 

twenty. 

A  feature  that  will  impress  the  careful  observer  is  the  entire 
absence  of  iron  mills — that  is,  mills  with  metallic  grind- 
ing surfaces.  It  wTas  long  ago  decided  here  that  these  were  unfit 
for  grinding  colors  when  purity  of  tone  was  essential.  In  a  com- 
partment entirely  separate  may  be  seen  the  mills  for  grinding 

the  coach  colors.  The  fresco  or  distemper  colors  which 
Frescoco'k)1!-  are  ground  in  water,  and  the  tube  colors  for  artists'  and 
Artists'  color  decorators'  uses,  also  have  special  compartments  allotted 

for  their  preparation. 
When  the  paint  has  been  finally  passed  by  the  inspector,  it  is 
conveyed  by  elevators  to  the  floor  directly  below,  employed  for 

packing,  storage  and  shipping.  Much  of  the  finished 
plckuf Pamt  *s  packed  at  once  into  cans  or  other  packages. 

That  which  is  not  packed  immediately  is  deposited  in 
carefully  protected  storage-tanks.  The  packing,  sealing  and 
labeling  of  all  small  cans  are  done  by  neat-handed  girls,  and 
many  devices  are  utilized  to  secure  speed,  economize  space  and 
minimize  labor. 

26 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


This  packing  floor  is  at  such  elevation  as  to  be 
level  with  the  floors  of  cars  or  wagons;  railway-tracks  Vacuities 
pass  by  the  two  ends  of  the  building,  and  all  along 
one  side  teams  may  load. 

Below  this  floor  is  a  good  high  basement,  in  which  is  stored 
all  of  the  output  that  is  packed  for  stock;  here  the  pro- 
duction of  the  winter  is  accumulated,  ready  for  the  de-  stock1" 
mands  of  the  spring  trade. 

On  the  first  floor  at  one  time  may  be  seen  large  orders  in  prep- 
aration for  the  branch  houses  in  New  York,  Cincinnati  and  New 
Orleans;  to  these  branch  houses  shipments  are  made  in  car-load 
lots. 

This  mill  house  is  75  x  150  feet  in  area,  and  it  is  devoted  solely 
to  the  preparation  of  colors.  The  height  from  floor  to  Descri  ti 
ceiling  is  quite  unusual,  insuring  good  distribution  of  escni£10* 
light.  The  construction  is  on  the  modern  slow-burn-  mui  House, 
ing  plan,  which  also  insures  freedom  from  dust.  The 
elevators  are  run  at  high  speed,  so  that  the  movement  of  material 
and  product  is  made  with  quietness,  accuracy  and  dispatch.  It 
is  noticed  that  there  is  no  retrograde  movement  in  the  handling 
of  the  material,  and  this  is  a  very  important  matter  in  the  saving 
of  labor. 

In  an  annex  is  the  powerful  engine  required  for  this 
building;  also  the  dynamo  for  supplying  the  electric      ^aifd & 
lights  used  after  nightfall  on  the  short  winter  days  xr  Dynamo, 
when  the  business  requires  the  department  to  be  run 
longer  than  the  usual  ten  hours. 

We  will  now  enter  a  much  older,  though  equally  substantial, 
building  of  the  same  size  as  the  one  just  left;  this  is 
used  principally  for  the  preparation  of  white  paints.  paints 
The  white  lead  manufacturing  departments  have  already 
been  visited,  and  are  described  on  pages  10  and  11. 

From  the  drying  pans  or  kilns  the  finished  product  is  taken 
by  cars  over  an  elevated  track  directly  to  the  third  floor  of  the 
building  we  are  now  visiting.    On  this  floor  the  white  lead  re- 
ceives a  certain  quantity  of  oil,  and  is  chased  and  mulled  so  as  to 
induce  the  saponification  that  gives  to  white  lead  its  superior 
body;  this  treatment  leaves  it  like  putty.    The  mass  is 
then  chuted  to  the  mixers  on  the  second  floor,  where  a  ophite* 
further  quantity  of  oil  is  incorporated  and  the  proper  Lead 
consistency  for  grinding  obtained.    The  mills  are  on 
the  first  floor,  and  are  fed  directly  from  the  mixers;  two  systems 

27 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


of  grinding  are  used — the  new  or  roller  mill  and  the  old  or  flat 
circular  stone  mill. 

The  ground  lead  is  discharged  from  the  mills  directly  upon 
the  rotating,  hollow  metal  discs  of  cooling  machines,  which  are 
cooiin  chilled  by  a  constant  flow  of  cold  water  through  them; 
process.  this  cooling  is  essential  to  the  good-keeping  qualities 
of  the  lead.  Proper  grinding  of  the  lead  continues  the 
chemical  action  between  the  oil  and  the  pigment  which  commenced 
with  the  first  treatment;  chemical  action  is  always  accompanied 
chemical  heat,  and  if  continued  for  too  long  a  time  in  the 

Action  case  °f  white  lead  and  oil,  the  product  is  considerably 
damaged;  it  is  frequently  the  case  that  the  ground  lead 
is  discharged  directly  from  the  mills  to  the  packages  and  then 
„  lumps  are  liable  to  form  or  the  paint  turn  to  a  bad  color.  All  of 
this  is  avoided  here  by  drawing  the  heat  off  and  thus  checking 
chemical  action. 

Fiom  the  coolers  the  lead  goes  to  storage-tubs  of  five  to  ten 
tons'  capacity  each,  in  which  it  is  allowed  to  season  or  "  age." 

All  the  white  lead  from  this  factory  has  a  beautiful  silky  text- 
Features  ure'  anc^  *s  n°t  cxcc^ec^  °y  anY  niade  in  the  qualities  of 
of  the  extreme  whiteness,  opacity,  fineness  and  spreading 
wMteiead.  powerj  in  fact,  any  that  equals  it  is  an  accidental 
rather  than  a  regular  product.  More  attention  is  here 
given  to  supplying  the  particular  requirements  of  different  con- 
sumers that!  in  any  other  establishment;  many  corroders  will 
grind  their  lead  in  but  one  way;  the  boast  of  this  place  is  that 
all  proper  requirements  are  provided  for. 

A  very  stiff  lead,  almost  like  cheese  in  consistency,  is  known 
as  "A"  lead,  and  is  especially  acceptable  to  those  who  have  been 
accustomed  to  old  English  lead. 

The  "  I.  S."  is  a  stiff  lead,  softer  than  the  "A,"  but  particu- 
larly adapted  for  fine  inside  flat  work,  where  absolute  freedom 
from  gloss  is  a  requisite. 

A  still  thinner  or  oily  lead,  intended  for  general  outside  work, 
is  known  as  "  O"  lead. 

The  special  requirements  of  those  manufacturers  who  use  white 
lead  in  large  quantities  have  been  carefully  studied  and  provided 
for. 

lead  and  *n  Edition  to  the  grinding  of  pure  white  lead  and 

zinc  Paints.    zmc  paints,  a   mixture   of  zinc  and  white  lead,  in- 
tended  for  the  "Town  and  Country"  paints,  is  pre- 
pared in  this  building. 

28 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


The  paint  for  the  ready-mixed  department  is  carried  to  it  in 
iron  cars,  so  arranged  as  to  discharge  directly  into  the  ready-mixed 
paint  mixers. 

Before  entering  the  ready-mixed  paint  department,  a  general 
inspection  of  the  processes  of  receiving,  storing  and  distributing  the 
oil,  and  a  trip  to  the  oil- treatment  house,  should  be  made.  The  oil  is 
received  in  barrels  or  tanks  in  car-load  lots;  if  in  bar- 
rels, the  entire  load  is  run  on  a  long  skid  over  a  trough,  Treatment 
bungs  are  drawn  and  the  sixty  barrels  are  drained  at  House, 
one  time  into  the  trough,  which,  by  the  necessary  pipes, 
discharges  into  the  receiving  or  storage  tanks;  these  tanks  are 
made  of  boiler  iron  and  placed  at  such  points  as  may  be  conve- 
nient. When  the  oil  is  delivered  by  car-  tanks,  it  is  discharged 
directly  into  the  receivers  by  gravity.  The  storage- tanks  are  all 
connected  with  a  general  pipe  system,  by  means  of  which,  and  the 
aid  of  the  ubiquitous  air-pressure,  the  oil  is  distributed  to  any  desired 
pointo  The  pipe  system  is  extended  under  one  of  the  main  streets 
to  the  oil-treatment  house,  situated  in  an  isolated  position  beyond 
the  boiler-house,  and  nearly  one  thousand  feet  from  the  point 
where  the  oil  is  received.  The  oil  treating-house  is  necessarily  of 
fire-proof  construction;  in  it  all  the  oil  used  in  "  Town  and  Coun- 
try" paint  is  clarified  and  made  more  elastic  and  durable  by 
boiling  and  other  processes.  For  simply  boiling  the  oil  there  are 
five  hooded  kettles,  in  which  i ,  700  gallons  may  be  treated  at  once. 

The  stone-dressers  should  not  pass  unnoticed.  In  a  room  by 
themselves  may  be  seen  the  half  dozen  men  who  are  constantly  at 
work  keeping  the  mill  stones  sharpened.  The  proper 
operation  of  grinding  is  not  dissimilar  to  cutting  with  D  st?ne" 
shears.  The  edges  must  be  kept  sharp,  for  when  a  mill 
stone  loses  its  ' '  dress' '  — that  is,  becomes  smooth  and  glazed — it  will 
not  cut  the  particles  of  material  into  smaller  particles;  it  may  mull 
or  crush,  but  it  will  not  grind.  An  interesting  tool  for  doing  this 
work  is  the  pneumatic  stone-dresser,  which  materially  hastens  the 
operation.  All  of  the  stone- dressing  for  the  entire  plant  is  done 
here,  the  mills  being  so  arranged  that  both  the  bed-stone  and 
grinder  may  be  removed. 

As  the  manufacture  of  the  "Town  and  Country" 
ready-mixed  paints  is  the  culminating  work  of  this  Featuresof 
establishment,  we  will  mention  some  other  departments      the  Piant. 
before  describing  the  one  devoted  to  this  manufacture. 

On  our  way  from  the  oil- treatment  house  we  take  a  glance  at 
the  stable,  airy,  well  lighted,  well  ventilated,  and  equipped  as  it 

29 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


stable         should  be  for  the  fort}-- five  magnificent  animals  it 
houses.    The  draught  horses  are  mostly  Clydesdales, 
weighing  1600  to  1900  lbs.  each,  and  when  doing  their  work 
(without  apparent  effort)  in  front  of  the  large  and  heavily-loaded 
w  agons,  they  well  represent  the  substantial  character  of  the  business. 
The  printing  office  is  a  necessary  adjunct;  in   it   every  la- 
bel, price  list,  circular,  etc.  that  pertains  to  the  bu- 
Dcpartment.  smess  is  prepared;  all  of  the  work  (including  colored 
plates)  of  this  pamphlet  was  done  in  it.    Already  it  has 
established  an  excellent  reputation  for  choice  color- work;  the  inks 
used  are  prepared  in  the  color  mill-house. 

Another  feature  that  impresses  the  visitor  is  the  system  of 
railroad  tracks  ramifying  the  entire  plant  and  connecting  with 
all  the  trunk  lines  entering  the  city;  there  is  over  half  a 
Transpor-  m[\e  Qf  railroad  tracks  in  the  works,  and  these  give 
Facilities  three  direct  connections  with  the  main  tracks  of  the 
railway  lines  passing  in  proximity.  Lying  directly  on 
the  Schuylkill  River,  vessels  discharge  brimstone  and  other  crude 
material  from  foreign  sources  without  cost  of  lighterage  or  other 
handling;  in  fact,  every  facility  is  afforded  for  receiving  material 
from  and  shipping  it  to  all  points,  and  for  the  conduct  of  the 
business  of  the  establishment  upon  the  most  favorable  conditions. 

Entering  the  "Town  and  Country"  ready-mixed 
Ready  Mixed  pg^f  department,  the  visitor  is  impressed  by  an  array  of 
Department  tanks  carrying  their  height  through  two  floors.  These 
are  the  mixers,  eighteen  in  all;  they  are  double — that 
is,  one  tank  within  another — and  with  internal  machinery  that  beats 
Mixers  and  mixes  the  material  into  a  homogeneous  con- 
sistency. The  pigments  and  vehicles  are  charged 
into  the  tanks  from  the  fourth  floor  of  the  building.  The  paste, 
white  lead  and  zinc  white  are  brought  up  in  iron  cars;  the  liquids 
are  delivered  by  the  air-pressure,  and  when  material  equal  in 
volume  to  700  gallons  is  placed  in  each  mixer,  the  powerful 
machinery  is  set  in  motion,  and  the  process  of  churning,  beating, 
dashing  and  mixing  is  continued  for  two  days.  Can  any  hand- 
method  in  any  way  approach  this  in  effectiveness?  These 
mixers   are  only   for  making   the  white   base   of  the  paint; 

the  coloring  is  done  in  smaller  mixers.    The  power- 
eoior.ing and  ful  tinting  colors  are  first  reduced  with  oil  in  mixers, 
somewhat  similar  to  the  large  ones  described,  to  a  very 
thin  consistency,  and  then  added  to  the  white  base  in  the  color- 
ing mixers  in  the  right  proportions  to  produce  the  desired  tints; 

30 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


these  coloring  mixers  make  150  to  200  gallons  to  each  batch. 
From  these  the  finished  paint  is  deposited  in  the  storage  and 
filling  tanks,  whence  it  is  filled  into  packages  as  required. 
Before  the  paint  is  filled  into  a  package  it  is  strained  through  a 
very  fine  wire  sieve  which  removes  every  trace  of  ' '  skin' '  or 
coarse  particle. 

All  the  work  is  by  gravity;  the  operations  com-    Economy  of 
mence  on  the  fourth  floor  and  the  paint  is  delivered     th  f^uS" 
into  the  packages  on  the  first.     The  business  is  con- 
ducted so  systematically  that  ten  thousand  gallons  . 
of  paint  may  be  delivered  in  ten  hours  without  any  pres- 
sure or  confusion. 

Some  of  the  rules  governing  this  department  are  well  worthy  of 
notice.    The  shades  and  tints  are  maintained  to  a  uniformity  by  a 
peculiar  system  of  unchangeable  standards.    It  is  well 
known  that  white  lead,  zinc  white  and  colors  react  on  ^"ufiuSr? 
one  another  chemically,  and  slowly  but  surely  change  anu 
their  original  tone.     Now,  to  prevent  a  change  in  the  color- 
standards    they  are  here  made  of  absolutely  non- 
changeable,  inert  material,  which,  while  having  no  paint  abi^coior- 
property  of  itself,  serves  to  give  the  ' '  shader' '  his  un-  standards, 
erring  standard  to  which  to  shade  each  batch. 

After  the  shader  has  done  his  work  and  passed  the  paint, 
a  practical  painter  samples  the  batch,  paints  it  out,  and 
notes  carefully  its  bod}^  working  and  drying.  It  can-  T^pe'ctfon*1 
not  be  packed  until  he  pronounces  it  correct  in  these 
particulars,  when  the  packers  may  have  it.  From  the  pack- 
ing tanks  it  is  drawn  off  into  a  gauged  receptacle  holding  ten 
gallons.  This  measure  is  on  a  truck  scale;  when  the  measure 
is  full  to  the  proper  mark  it  is  weighed  by  a  weigh  clerk,  who 
compares  the  weight  with  the  table  of  weights.  If  it  vary 
more  than  one  per  cent,  from  the  average  weight,  it  is  rejected 
and  must  be  remanipulated.  If  found  correct,  it  is  filled  into 
the  desired  packages. 

It  is  well  to  note  right  here  that  much  of  the  manufacture 
is  packed  in  one-gallon  cans.  Much  is  said  about  1 1  trade' ' 
gallons  and  "commercial"  gallons.  Now,  the  United 
States  standard  gallon  is  231  cubic  inches.  Some  Measure* 
manufacturers  lay  great  stress  on  the  alleged  fact 
that  their  one-gallon  cans  hold  231  cubic  inches;  but  even  so:  that 
does  not  permit  231  cubic  inches  of  paint  to  be  put  in  them;  in 
other  words,  a  can  cannot  be  entirely  filled.    If  the  ' '  Town  and 

31 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


Country"  one-gallon  cans  be  measured,  it  will  be  found  that  their 
capacity  is  nearly  240  cubic  inches,  and  that  231  cubic  inches  of 
paint  are  packed  into  them. 

A  practice,  rapidly  dying  out,  we  believe,  is  to  sell  what  are 
called  "trade"  gallons.  These  hold  less  than  seven  pints.  A 
can  to  hold  one  gallon  should  be  not  less  than  six  and 
Measure*1  eleven-sixteenth  inches  in  diameter,  and  six  and  three- 
quarter  inches  in  height.  Height  is  frequently  used 
to  deceive  the  unwary,  as  many  so-called  gallon  cans  are  seven 
inches  high,  but  only  six  in  diameter,  and  such  a  can  will  not  hold 
quite  seven  pints. 

We  have  seen  the  manufacture  of  "Town  and  Country"  ready- 
mixed  paints  from  the  crudest  material  to  the  finished  product 
ready  for  use,  and  have  learned  much  of  the  chemistry  of  the 
subject  in  plain,  matter-of-fact  language.  A  little  more  may  be 
said  in  the  way  of  practical  chemistry,  and  then  some  practical 
suggestions  will  be  given. 

As  the  perishing  of  paint  is  almost  entirely  due  to  the  destruc- 
perishin  of  **on  °^  *ne  vemc^e>  an(l  as  nearly  all  the  pigments  which 
Paint  Dest  fulfil  the  immediate  or  first  requirements  in  paint- 

~iaking  are  more  or  less  chemically  active  and  aid  in 
the  destruction  of  the  vehicle,  scientific  paint-making  requires 
that  the  vehicle  be  rendered  as  inert  as  possible  to  the  action  of 
the  pigment;  and  further,  in  ready-mixed  paint-making  it  is  very 
why  Town  essential  that  chemical  action  should  not  take  place 
and  country  between  the  components  of  the  paint  while  it  is  in  the 
Paint  does  package  in  the  store-house  waiting  for  the  buyer.  In 
not  change.  Town  and  Country  paints  this  chemical  action  is  pre- 
vented by  keeping  the  paint  in  a  state  of  emulsion.  The  water  of 
emulsion  must  evaporate  before  the  drying  action  can  take  place. 
As  this  water  evaporates,  the  surface  of  the  paint  gradually  as- 
sumes that  smooth  and  even  condition  which  produces  the  hard, 
glossy,  durable  surface  for  which  these  paints  are  so  renowned. 
Unfortunately,  this  plan  of  paint-making  permits  the  unscrupu- 
lous manufacturer  to  palm  off  water  for  paint  when  the  quantity 
introduced  is  more  than  sufficient  for  its  proper  use.  Such  a  paint, 
however,  will  not  be  used  by  the  practical  painter  or  by  any  one 
who  is  a  fair  judge  of  paints.  A  good  test  of  this  paint  is 
weight;  taking  the  pale  tints,  which  must  contain  the  maximum 
of  zinc  and  lead  base.  When  properly  made,  the  emulsified  paint 
weighs  13  to  15  pounds  per  gallon;  the  water  paints  will  weigh 
bu4  q  to  11.    This  rule  will  not  apply  to  those  dark  colors  which 

32 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


do  not  permit  the  use  of  any  white  in  their  preparation.  These  may 
be  made  of  pigment  and  oil  only,  and  weigh  but  9  pounds. 

In  the  Town  and  Country  paints  the  oily  vehicle  is  simply  the 
purest  linseed  oil  that  is  made,  very  carefully  treated  to  make  it 
durable,  kept  by  emulsion  in  an  inert  condition  until  used,  and 
rendered  fluid  for  working  under  the  brush  by  the  addition  of 
naphtha,  which  more  than  any  other  vehicle  has  the  property  of 
thinning  a  paint,  and  therefore  may  be  used  in  smallest  proportion; 
furthermore,  every  atom  of  this  evaporates  on  drying,  so  that  the 
pure  pigment  and  durable  oil  only  are  left  on  the  surface. 

The  reader  who  has  followed  these  pages  to  this  point  is  with- 
out doubt  convinced  that  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  paint  su- 
perior to  that  produced  in  this  establishment,  and  doubtless  he 
believes  that  the  proper  place  for  mixing  the  paints — as  it  is  for 
grinding  them — is  the  factory. 

The  change  of  the  present  day  to  paints  ready  mixed,  or  en- 
tirely prepared  for  use,  is  in  conformity  with  the  gen- 
eral advancement  of  the  age:  it  is  not  revolutionary  or  ^R^d^ 
extraordinary;  it  is  simply  a  step  in  a  natural  evolu-  Mixed  points" 
tion  or  progression.  As  the  grinding  of  dry  paints  by 
hand  with  slab  and  muller  was  succeeded  by  the  employment  of 
steam  machinery,  so  the  mixing  of  paste  paints  by  means  of  a 
stick  into  a  condition  for  use  has  been  superseded  also,  in  its 
turn,  by  the  use  of  mechanism  specially  designed.  It  is  merely  a 
repetition  of  the  story  we  see  everywhere  around  us:  manual  labor 
with  its  drudgery,  want  of  uniformity,  and  want  of  completeness 
giving  place  to  the  perfection  of  scientific  appliances. 

Not  only  does  the  use  of  ready-mixed  paints  constitute  a  gain 
to  the  painter  in  convenience  and  economy,  saving 
drudgery,  waste  and  time,  but,  what  is  of  even  greater  ^Pa^^t 
importance  (especially  to  the  property  owner),  there  is  antagonistic 
also  a  material  gain — when  standard  brands,  such  as  to  the  work 
the  Town  and  Country,  are  purchased — in  the  quality  ofthePra°- 
of  the  paints  obtained.  Under  the  old  method  of  paint-  tical  Painter- 
mixing  it  is  impossible  to  incorporate  with  the  pigment  more  than 
a  certain  quantity  of  oil  without  interfering  with  its  working  qual- 
ities. Oil,  however,  is  really  the  life  of  paint;  it  is  mainly  from 
the  oil  that  paint  obtains  its  preservative  virtue,  and  it  may  be 
laid  down  as  an  axiom  that  the  more  oil  (consistent  with  the  re- 
tention of  proper  working  qualities),  and  the  better  the  oil,  the 
better  the  paint.  This  is  one  reason  why  the  Town  and  Country 
paints  are  found  so  superior  in  durability  to  white  lead  mixed 

33 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


in  the  ordinary  way,  and  it  partially  explains  the  gain  in  quality 
referred  to  above.  The  method  of  the  preparation  of  these  paints 
causes  the  incorporation  of  a  much  larger  percentage  of  oil  than 
has  been  possible  by  previous  methods.  When  we  add  to  this 
the  fact  that  the  process  employed  gives  also  a  rich  gloss  or  finish 
unobtainable  in  any  other  way,  which,  besides  adding  greatly  to 
beauty  of  appearance,  enables  the  paints  to  resist  more  effectually 
the  action  of  the  elements,  the  superiority  of  the  new  system  over 
the  old  will  be  apparent. 

The  advantages  of  a  paint  ready  for  use  (  ready  for  use  except- 
ing the  addition  of  more  oil  for  raw  surfaces)  are  now  so  well 
if  no  r  ai  recognized  that  nothing  need  be  said  in  their  favor. 
th!n°g,  there    Much  condemnation  of  ready-mixed  paints  is  heard  be- 

wouidnot  be  cause  so  many  are  inferior  and  rive  such  unsatisfactory 
■ny  Counter-  -n.A  j  •     i  ,  J 

feit.  results.     But  no  one  condemns  real  money  because 

there  is  counterfeit  money,  and  no  one  condemns  white 
lead  or  painters'  colors  because  much  that  is  sold  is  counterfeit. 
We  know  that  good  and  pure  may  be  had,  and  when  once  we  are 
made  acquainted  with  the  reliability  or  lack  of  it  in  different 
brands,  we  are  no  longer  imposed  upon.  So  with  paints  ready  for 
use.  Some  are  good,  many  are  bad.  When  we  learn  to  discrim- 
inate between  the  good  and  bad,  and  use  only  the  former,  we  shall 
recognize  fully  their  value,  their  superiority  for  exterior  work  to 
any  hand-mixed  paint. 

At  one  time  skilled  painters  feared  that  giving  up  the  control 
of  mixing  the  paints  they  used  might  prove  detrimental  to  their 
business;  but  so  many  have  admitted  the  groundlessness  of  such 
fear  by  their  regular  use  of  high-grade  mixed  paints  that  this  sub- 
ject need  no  longer  be  considered. 

The  manufacturers  of  "Town  and  Country"  paint  prefer  that 
other  paint  be  used  by  any  one  who  will  not  employ  a  competent 
painter,  because  unskilled  painters  cannot  do  good 
painters  use  work,  and  their  lack  of  skill  and  experience  leads  to 
Refd"GMixed  condemnation  of  the  paint  used  by  them.  Very 
PaTnts.  lx  few  competent  painters,  and  none  who  have  intelligent- 
ly tested  it,  will  deny  the  superiority  of  the  "Town 
and  Country"  paint  for  exterior  painting  when  compared  with 
the  best  shop-  or  hand-mixed  material.  They  recognize  its  ad- 
vantages, just  as  they  recognize  the  advantage  of  buying  white 
lead  and  colors  already  ground,  instead  of  buying  the  dry  pig- 
ment and  vehicle  separately  and  grinding  them  together  in  the 
shop;  no  one  could  do  that  now  and  earn  his  salt. 

34 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


While  it  is  an  unquestioned  fact  that  but  few  painters — and 
only  those  of  great  capacity  and  experience — can  produce  shades 
of  color  of  such  beauty  and  richness  as  are  furnished,  ready  for 
use,  in  the  "Town  and  Country"  paints,  and,  while  it  is  also 
true  that  painters,  whatever  their  training,  cannot  produce  paints 
of  similar  quality  by  the  means  at  their  command,  still,  the  object 
of  the  manufacturers  is  not  to  do  away  with,  but  rather  to  sup- 
plement, the  painter's  work.  There  is  no  antagonism  possible  or 
intended.  The  manufacturers  of  "  Town  and  Country"  paints, 
so  far  from  endeavoring  to  lessen  the  use  of  experienced  labor, 
most  strongly  urge  and  recommend  its  constant  employment. 
They  recognize  that  the  greater  the  skill  of  the  workman  the 
better  the  results  obtained  from  their  material,  and  the  better 
these  results  the  more  advantageous  it  is  for  the  reputation  of 
their  paints,  and,  consequently,  for  their  interests. 

To  obtain  satisfactory  results  it  is  not  only  essential 
to  have  the  best  material,  but  that  material  must  be  Sug?eug™s 
properly  used.    If  work  be  done  regardless  of  the  con-  mpainf 
ditions  necessary  to   insure  permanency,  failure  is 
simply  invited  and  must  be  expected. 

Too  much  stress  cannot  be  laid  upon  selecting  the  proper  time 
for  painting.    Work  done  in  wet  weather  or  on  rain- 
soaked  wood  or  sappy  or  unseasoned  wood  is  almost  Application 
certain  to  fail.    Work  done  hurriedly  or  with  thick,       of  Paint. 
heavy  coats  of  paint  is  also  almost  certain  to  result  in 
disappointment. 

See  that  your  painting  is  done  in  dry  weather.  See  that 
ample  time  is  given  between  coats  for  each  to  dry;  see  that  no 
more  paint  is  used  than  is  necessary;  see  that  all  new  work  has 
three  coats.  Three  thin  coats  will  take  less  paint  than  two  heavy 
coats,  and  will  wear  better  and  longer.  Above  all  things,  see  that 
you  have  an  experienced,  capable  and  honest  man  to  do  your  work. 
Such  a  workman  will  probably  give  better  results  with  poor 
material  than  the  incompetent  man  will  with  the  best  material. 

Some  manufacturers  guarantee  the  durability  of  their  paint, 
and,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  some  of  the  poorest  Guarantee 
paints  are  most  strongly  guaranteed.  The  1 '  Town 
and  Country"  paint  is  sold  simply  on  a  warranty  of  its  purity  and 
composition,  and  this  warranty  will  be  accompanied  by  any  reason- 
able penalty  required.  The  manufacturers  know  from  a  long 
experience  that  properly  used,  and  used  under  proper  conditions, 
nothing  but  the  best  results  can  be  obtained,  and  they  will  not 

55 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


hold  themselves  responsible  for  the  ignorance  or  cupidity  of  the 
property  owner  or  the  inexperience  or  dishonesty  of  the  one  ap- 
plying the  paint. 

It  is  absolutely  necessary  for  good  results  that  the  original 
surface  be  put  in  good  condition.    It  is  a  common  error,  even 
with  experienced  painters,  to  believe  that  anything 

andwhy  ^°  ^or  Prmnn&5  Dut  as  tne  priming  coat  bears 

Necessary.     tne  same  relation  to  the  succeeding  coats  that  the 

foundation  of  a  building  bears  to  the  superstructure, 
it  is  as  fallacious  to  expect  durability  from  a  bad  priming  coat  as 
permanence  from  a  building  that  has  a  poor,  uncertain  or  bad 
foundation.  In  many  buildings  the  lumber  is  inferior,  wet,  or 
unseasoned.  In  such  cases  the  priming  coat  should  be  applied 
when  the  weather  is  driest,  and  allowed  to  remain  for  some  weeks 
before  applying  the  other  coats.  The  oil  appears  to  displace  the 
sap,  hastening  its  evaporation.  If  the  succeeding  coats  were 
applied  at  once,  the  sap  would  be  held  in,  and  finally  result  in 
peeling  or  scaling  the  paint.  If  the  wood  be  well  seasoned,  no  more 
time  need  be  given  after  its  application  than  sufficient  to  dry  the 
priming  coat  thoroughly. 

The  essential  properties  of  the  priming  coat  are  to  fill  the 
pores  and  make  a  surface  to  which  the  succeeding  coats  will 
Rssentiai  firmly  adhere.  Therefore,  the  pigment  should  be  one 
propert'i.s  that  will  carry  a  large  quantity  of  oil,  and  still  make  a 
prfmer°d       workable  paint,  and  also  be  chemically  inactive,  yet 

in  such  mechanical  condition  that  its  particles  will  at- 
tach themselves  to  the  grain  of  the  wood.  White  lead  does 
not  fill  all  of  these  conditions  so  well  as  certain  ochres  that  are 
free  from  clay,  but  which  contain  free  silica  in  a  sharp  but  finely- 
divided  state.  An  ochre  that  will  not  carry  three  times  its  own 
weight  of  raw  oil,  and  at  the  same  time  be  a  fairly  thick  paint, 
will  not  meet  the  requirements. 

To  meet  all  these  conditions,  Messrs.  Harrison  Bros.  &  Co. 
■  Town and  nave  prepared  their  "Town  and  Country"  primer  and 
country"  filler,  and  this  has  proven  to  be  the  most  suitable 
primer  and     article  yet  offered  for  the  purpose.    While  this  should  be 

applied  freely,  it  is  to  be  thoroughly  worked  into  the 
surface.  If  a  heavy  coat  be  applied  to  sap  or  yellow  pine  and  al- 
lowed to  stand  for  several  months,  it  will  be  found  that  the  sap  or 
resin  has  been  killed;  this  may  then  be  cleaned  off  and  the  work 
finished,  with  most  durable  result.  Work  will  not  stand,  when 
finished  at  once,  on  green,  sappy,  resinous  or  waterlogged  wood. 

36 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


As  previously  stated,  not  only  is  much  of  the  ready-mixed 
paint  that  is  offered  for  sale  worthless,  but  so  are  many 
of  the  painters'  colors  and  much  of  the  white  lead,  and  ^JSJJJ^Jr 
therefore  one  is  liable  to  as  much  imposition,  unin-  pure 
tentionally  or  otherwise,  on  the  part  of  the  vender  in  buying  the 
ingredients  separately  and  mixing  them  himself  as 
in  buying  them  in  mixed  form.    In  fact,  at  this  time  <SSJiSS 
( 1 89 1 )  there  is  more  danger  from  sophisticated  linseed  oil  °nt^n\M 
and  oil  substitutes  than  even  from  white  lead  and  colors. 

An  intelligent  painter,  writing  from  a  Western  city  of  40,000 
population,  states  that  nearly  all  the  painting  done  there  in  a  year 
was  with  oil  retailed  at  less  than  one-half  the  crusher's  The  Con. 
price  for  linseed  oil,  and  asks,  Can  any  sensible  man  be  sumcr  in- 
surprised  at  the  general  dissatisfaction  with  painting  ?  Quality  in 
Poor  pigments  and  good  oil  are  a  better  combination  Yn^conntr'" 
than  the  best  pigments  and  sophisticated  oil.  In  using  an  °p?iiu. 
1 1  Town  and  Country' '  paints  the  consumer  is  assured  of 
not  only  the  use  of  the  best  quality  of  oil  and  the  best  pigments,  but 
the  very  best  combination  of  them  known  in  modern  paint-making. 

It  is  absolutely  impossible  to  give  a  paint  in  mixed  form — that 
is,  of  the  proper  consistency — for  all  kinds  of  surfaces  and  all  sorts 
of  temperatures.  When  the  surface  is  very  raw  or 
absorbent,  a  thinner  paint  must  be  used  than  for  a  hard  Pbeof Con- 
or non-absorbent  surface;  and  a  paint  that  is  of  the  sult^condi^ 
right  consistency  for  work  in  a  temperature  of  500  or  tfcmsofsur- 
609  will  be  found  quite  too  thin  in  a  temperature  of  8o°  Temperature1 
or  900  In  "Town  and  Country"  paint  the  consist- 
ency is  just  right  for  a  hard  surface  and  moderate  temperature, 
and  in  general  for  a  finishing  coat.  Oil  or  turpentine,  or  both, 
must  be  used  for  the  undercoats,  and  these  are  the  only  articles  to 
be  provided  in  addition  to  the  "Town  and  Country"  paint.  It 
therefore  becomes  necessary  that  every  one  using  "Town  and 
Country"  paint  assure  himself  that  the  oil  or  turpentine  used 
is  perfectly  pure  and  of  the  best  quality. 

It  is  not  contended  that  the  use  of  cheap  oils  or  linseed-oil 
substitutes  is  never  justifiable,  for  there  are  occasions  when 
painting  is  for  temporary  purposes  only,  and  it  may  be  wise  to 
use  material  of  only  temporary  value;  but  what  is  unjustifiable  is 
vending  impure  oil  or  oil  substitutes  as  pure  linseed  oil;  and  it 
seems  to  us  that  the  linseed-oil  manufacturer  and  consumer  have 
the  same  right  to  protection  by  law  against  such  practice  as  the 
dairyman  and  the  butter  consumer  have  against  the  sale  of 

37 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


oleomargarine  as  genuine  butter.  As  the  sale  of  oleomargarine 
as  such  is  not  objected  to,  so  there  cannot  be  any  objection  to  the 
sale  of  substitute  oils  as  such. 

Our  talk  about  priming  has  had  reference  to  new  work  mainly. 
The  repainting  of  a  surface  when  the  old  paint  has  thoroughly 
perished — that  is,  has  become  like  dust — is  quite  a 
ofSdato?  simple  matter.  After  the  surface  has  been  thoroughly 
surfaces.  sand-papered  and  dusted  the  primer  and  filler  maybe  used 
as  for  new  work,  or  the  color  in  which  the  work  is  to 
be  finished  applied  at  once;  but  not  more  than  two  coats,  the  first 
coat  made  very  thin  with  raw  linseed  oil  and  some  turpentine. 
The  "Town  and  Country"  paint  of  usual  consistency  should  be 
thinned  for  such  work  with  about  one  quart  of  oil  and  one  pint  of 
turpentine  to  each  gallon.  The  turpentine  aids  it  to  penetrate  the 
pores  of  the  old  paint. 

When  the  old  paint  is  very  hard,  but  inclined  to  chip  off,  very 
great  care  is  required  to  produce  good  results,  because  the  new 
paint  on  top  of  the  old  will,  by  the  contraction  in  drying,  causes 
the  latter  to  loosen  its  already  feeble  hold,  and  old  and  new  come 
off  together,  The  old  paint  will  not  permit  the  penetration  of  the 
new  paint  through  it,  so  as  to  give  it  a  new  bond  to  the  wood  or 
original  surface,  and  it  is  not  sufficiently  bonded  to  resist  the  con- 
traction of  the  new  coat  in  drying;  thorough  scraping  must  first 
be  resorted  to.  Unless  the  color  is  to  be  changed,  it  is  best  to  give 
such  a  surface  but  one  coat,  as  thin  as  it  is  possible  to  work  it  and 
cover  properly.  If  the  color  is  to  be  changed,  give  two  coats,  but 
with  an  interval  of  several  weeks,  and  each  coat  as  light  as  it  can 
be  worked. 

New  work  should  always  have  three  coats,  the  first  to  be 
w  work  °^  Pr^mer  and  filler,  as  previously  directed.  The 
ew  or  *  second  and  third  coats  are  to  be  of  the  color  selected. 
The  "Town  and  Country"  paint  for  second  coat  is  to  be  thinned 
with  about  one  quart  of  oil  and  one  pint  to  one  quart  of  turpentine 
to  each  gallon,  or  half  the  quantity  of  perfectly  sweet  naphtha 
may  be  used  in  place  of  the  turpentine.  Naphtha  containing  coal 
oil  will  injure  the  paint,  and  must  not  be  used  under  any  circum- 
stances. This  coat  must  be  well  brushed  out.  For  the  finishing 
coat  the  "  Town  and  Country"  paint  is  usually  of  proper  consist- 
ency; if  too  stout,  add  raw  linseed  oil  only  in  just  sufficient  quan- 
tity to  make  the  paint  work  freely  under  the  brush. 

On  every  package  of  paint  a  few  plain  aaid  explicit  directions 
are  given. 

38 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


It  is  obvious  that  the  quantity  of  paint  required  will  vary  ac- 
cording to  the  state  of  the  surface  to  be  painted.  For  — . 
new  work  on  lumber  fairly  smooth  and  of  good  quality  SSSS. 
it  will  be  safe  to  estimate  275  to  300  square  feet  of  sur- 
face per  gallon,  three  coats,  used  as  above  directed,  about  two- 
fifths  to  be  primer  and  filler.  On  a  surface  properly  prepared  with 
Primer  and  Filler,  one  gallon  of  "Town  and  Country"  paint  will 
cover  400  square  feet  or  more  of  surface,  two  coats.  The  great 
economy  of  the  paint  is  at  once  apparent. 

Economic  house-painting,  it  is  thus  seen,  does  not  depend 
upon  buying  the  lowest-priced  materials;  such  general- 
ly have  but  little  pigment  or  vehicle  value,  and  are,  Economic 
therefore,  relatively  dearer;  and  they  lack  the  element  p»intiag~ 
of  durability.  That  paint  is  best  which  can  be  laid  on 
in  the  thinnest  layers.  The  cheap  nostrums  must  be  1 1  flowed 
on"  in  thick  layers,  otherwise  the  surface  will  not  be  covered. 

Bear  in  mind,  the  Harrison  establishment  is  the  only  one  in 
which  are  conducted  all  the  processes  of  manufacture,  from  the 
crude  material  to  the  finished  product. 

When  measuring  for  quantity  required  do  not  make  any  al- 
lowance for  window  and  other  openings,  as  they  will 
not  any  more  than  equal  the  extra  surface  of  frames,  Measuno*- 
mouldings  and  other  projections.    It  is  quite  proper  to  take  the 
length,  breadth  and  height  of  a  building  in  full. 

Positive  rules  for  the  selection  of  colors  cannot  be  given.    It  is 
probably  one  of  the  most  difficult  features  in  the  work 
of  beautifying  the  home;  so  difficult  is  it  that  the  prop-  ScleC(Sforsf 
erty-owner  will  frequently  waive  his  or  her  natural 
good  taste  to  the  judgment  of  the  painter.    This  is  well  when  the 
painter  is  progressive,  has  fine  taste  and  will  continually  work  out 
new  color  schemes,  instead  of  (as  is  too  frequently  the  case)  follow- 
ing one  idea,  and  that  usually  very  dull  or  inharmonious.  The 
great  variety  of  colors  in  the  "Town  and  Country"  paints  permits 
every  possible  color  scheme  to  be  followed.    One  well-painted 
house  in  a  community  that  has  had  a  long  affliction  of 
stone  color  or  drab  creates  an  improvement  in  the  gen-  ptSSg 
eral  taste,  leading  quickly  to  the  betterment  of  the  en-  improves 
tire  neighborhood  and  increases  the  value  of  property.  It  Pv5uesy 
is  now  quite  common  to  find  suburbs  of  cities  of  most 
picturesque  appearance,  due  entirely  to  the  use  of  "Town  and 
Country'  'paint  in  bright  and  harmonious  combination  of  the  differ- 
ent shades.  As  it  is  impossible  to  give  satisfactorily  in  words  a  guide 

39 


THE  CHEMISTRY  OF  PAINTS. 


for  the  selection  and  application  of  colors,  some  illustrations  are 
illustrations   furrnsned  as  suggestions  of  good  color  effect;  but  print- 
us  ra  ions.  ^f  jj^j^  fails  to  do  justice  to  the  subject.    The  parent 
house  or  any  of  its  branches  will  suggest  combinations  on  receipt  of 
architect's  elevation,  photograph  or  sketch  of  building,  and  will 
give  full  directions  for  the  placing  of  each  color.    To  aid  in  this 
work  the  proprietors  have  published,  at  great  expense, 
fnd^w'      a  Portf°h°  °f  fifty  designs  on  a  large  scale.    These  are 
obtained.      in  the  hands  of  their  agents,  of  architects  and  of  prom- 
inent builders,  and  are  for  the  use  of  any  one  intending 
to  buy  or  use  the  paint.    Any  one  addressing  the  house  will  be  in- 
formed where  a  portfolio  may  be  seen,  or  will  be  loaned  one  under 
certain  conditions. 

Due  regard  must  be  given  to  the  architecture  of  the  building 
A  . .,  ,       in  both  the  selection  and  the  application  of  the  colors; 

Arcn  1  tcct u  re 

of  Building    though,  in  general,  any  combination  which  is  good  of 
considered,    itself  may  be  used,  provided  each  element  is  properly 
proportioned. 

Harmonious  color  selections  may  be  made  from  either  analo- 
gous colors  or  complementary  colors.  It  has  become  common  to 
use  the  latter  system,  yet  it  is  one  which  requires  the  best  devel- 
opment of  the  color  sense,  and  for  this  reason  better  results  are 
generally  obtained  by  one  with  natural  good  taste  than  by  one 
without  who  attempts  to  apply  the  theory  of  complementary 
colors.  Where  there  is  a  combination  of  the  two  systems,  very 
pleasing  results  are  obtained;  for  instance,  a  gradation  from  an 
olive  brown  to  a  light  but  wTarm  yellow  tint.  This  subject,  how- 
ever, can  be  covered  satisfactorily  by  illustrations  only. 

"  Town  and  Country' '  paints  are  intended  primarily  for  exterior 
house-painting,  but,  properly  used,  they  make  an 
co^try1^  equally  good  interior  paint.  For  plastered  walls  they 
where'used  are  exceptionally  valuable,  making  a  finish  that  will 
w  erc  permit  continued  cleaning.  For  the  plastered  walls  of 
kitchens  and  bath-rooms  they  make  a  finish  inferior  in  value 
only  to  glazed  tile. 

For  floors  they  will  not  dry  flinty  enough  unless  applied  in 
Floor-Paint-  numerous  thin  coats;  for  such  use  they  should  be  thin- 
ins-  ned  wrell  with  refined  naphtha  (benzine).    For  floor- 

painting  it  is  best  to  use  Harrisons'  Floor  Paints,  which  are  espe- 
cially prepared  for  such  purpose;  these  are  actually  hardened  by 
washing  and  are  very  resistant  to  ordinary  wear. 

For  furniture-painting  a  different  system  is  necessary.  Paints 

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